
Class _ 
Book___ 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



FROM, 

PIONEER HOME 

TO 

THE WHITE HOUSE. 

LIFE OF 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: 

BOYHOOD, YOUTH, MANHOOD, ASSASSINATION, DEATH. 

BY 

WILLIAM M. THAYER, 

AUTHOR OF " FROM LOG CABIN TO THE WHITE HOUSE," ETC. 

TOttfj lEulogg 

By HON. GEORGE BANCROFT. 



ENLARGED, REVISED, AND NEWLY ILLUSTRATED. 

NORWICH, CONN. r^s^/Tv r^ c> 

THE HENRY BILL PUBLISHING COMPANY. 
1882. 



Copyright, 1882, 
By William M. Thayer. 

All Rights Reserved. 



Boston Stereotype Fouitoby, 
4 Pearl Street. 



I 8 Sift. 



ALL WHO HONOR TRUE MANHOOD, 
STfjts Folume, 

PORTRAYING THE SIMPLICITY, TACT, TALENTS, SELF-RELIANCE, 
AND STERLING HONESTY OF 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 

IN HIS EARLY CONFLICT WITH POVERTY AND HARDSHIP, 

AND HIS REMARKABLE PUBLIC 

LIFE, 

5s Sincerelg attU a£tcctt0nat£lg EeBtcateb. 



PREFACE. 



'pHE author of this volume wrote the first Life of 
■*• Abraham Lincoln — The Pioneer Boy, and 
how he became President — which, after a very- 
large sale, passed out of print in consequence of the 
destruction of the plates by fire. A Campaign Life 
of only thirty-two pages, relating chiefly to his public 
career, was issued at the West, after his nomination for 
the Presidency in i860; but The Pioneer Boy was 
the first complete biography of the man. Dr. Holland 
said of it, several years later, in his Life of Lincoln, 
"A singularly faithful statement of the early experience 
of Abraham Lincoln." The materials for the Cam- 
paign Life spoken of were furnished by Mr. Lincoln, 
and he very kindly directed that pamphlet, with a 
quantity of unused matter, to be passed into our hands, 
together with the names and addresses of several of 
his early associates, reared with him in the wilderness, 
and of intimate friends in later life, from whom the 
most valuable information, never before given to the 
public, was received. From these sources of knowledge 
The Pioneer Boy was prepared. 

In the preparation of this new, larger and more elab- 
orate Life of Lincoln, we have had, in addition to the 
above sources of information, others of even greater 
value, at least so far as his character and public services 
relate. 



6 PREFACE. 

Subsequent to the issue of the former volume, the 
author, having in view the preparation of a more 
thorough biography at a future day, gathered much 
valuable information from public men, who were on the 
most intimate terms with President Lincoln at Wash- 
ington, as Sumner, Wilson, Buckingham, and Ames, 
who are dead, and others who are still living. Also, 
periodical literature has furnished many facts and anec- 
dotes, from time to time, which have been carefully 
laid aside. Last, though by no means least, access to 
the numerous lives of Lincoln published since his death 
— Dr. Holland's, Lamon's, Barrett's, Leland's, Forney's, 
and Raymond's — has been especially serviceable in the 
preparation of this volume. That very interesting 
work of Carpenter — Six Months in the White 
House — has furnished a fund of incident, illustrative 
of Mr. Lincoln's character and ability. 

From these ample sources of material, the author 
has endeavored to make a biography for popular read- 
ing such as the times demand. The very large sale of 
his recent life of President Garfield — From Log- 
Cabin to the White House — created an active de- 
mand for The Pioneer Boy, which fact seemed to 
mark the present time as providential for the issue of 
this new life of the martyr President. 

The perusal of this work will satisfy the reader that 
the author's claim, in the Preface to the Log-Cabin, 
that Garfield and Lincoln were remarkably alike in the 
circumstances of birth, early struggles, and later ex- 
perience, was fully justified. The fact is without a 
parallel in the history of public men — such marvellous 
coincidences from their birth in log-cabins to their 



PREFACE. 7 

assassination in the White House. Apart from this 
likeness, however, the life of Lincoln as an example of 
industry, tact, perseverance, application, energy, econ- 
omy, honesty, purity, devotion to principle, and triumph 
over obstacles in a successful career, presents a profit- 
able study to the youth and young men of this and 
other lands. The only parallel to it is that of Pres- 
ident Garfield, with which we aim to connect this later 
volume. The names of these two illustrious statesmen 
are for ever associated in the history of our Republic. 
It is well nigh impossible to separate them in the 
thoughts of men. Statesmen of such power and in- 
fluence, beginning their lives in want and obscurity 
and ending them in the White House, cut off at last 
by the shot of the assassin, must find their niche 
together in the temple of fame. One other name only 
of the great and good men of the past naturally affiliates 
with these two — that of George Washington — the life 
of whom will follow this as soon as it can be prepared, 
bearing the title, From Farm House to the White 
House. These three — Washington, Lincoln, and 
Garfield — remarkably alike in their early precocity 
and the wisdom and influence of manhood — furnish 
stimulating examples to American readers. 

Incidents are brought to the front in this life of 
Lincoln, as they were in that of Garfield, and they 
are made to portray the life of the man. Facts are 
better than logic to exhibit the elements of personal 
character; therefore, we let incidents tell the story of 
his life. 

When Abraham Lincoln was consulted respecting 
his biography, after his nomination for the Presidency 



8 PREFACE. 

in i860, he replied: " You can find the whole of my 
early life in a single line of Gray's Elegy : 

" ' The short and simple annals of the poor.' " 

While this apt reply revealed the simplicity of the 
man, it introduced the biographer at once to the open- 
ing of a marvellous life. For, surely, that is a marvel- 
lous life, when a boy, reared in a floorless log-cabin, 
works his way, by dint of perseverance, upward and 
onward, into the highest office of the land. 

The chief object of the book is to show how its 
hero won his position ; yet it incidentally exhibits the 
manners and customs of the times, and section of 
country, in which he was reared. 

Provincialisms are intentionally avoided, as well as 
that singular perversion of the English language that 
characterized the unlettered people of Kentucky and 
Indiana sixty years ago. 

When Mr. Lincoln was alive, and the honored Pres- 
ident of the United States, one of his old friends and 
neighbors wrote to us : "I have known him long and 
well, and I can say in truth, I think (take him altogether) 
he is the best man I ever saw. Although he has never 
made a public profession of religion, I nevertheless 
believe that he has the fear of God before his eyes, and 
that he goes daily to a throne of grace, and asks wis- 
dom, light, and knowledge, to enable him faithfully to 
discharge his duties." The reader will find abundant 
confirmation of the friend's eulogy in this volume. 

W. M. T. 
Franklin, Mass., March, 1882. 



CONTENTS. 



BIRTHPLACE. 

Cabin-home on Nolin Creek — Father and Mother — Ances- 
tors in Virginia — Indians, and Grandfather Killed by Them 

— A Dark Day — Tales of Abraham's Childhood — Battle 
with Indians — Capture of Three Girls — His Father's 
Youth — Learning Carpenter's Trade — Could not Read 
or Write — Learning of his Wife — Members of Baptist 
Church — His Mother — On Knob Creek — Abraham 
Fishing and Hunting — Dennis Hanks — Furniture of his 
House 23 

II. 

A SCHOOLBOY. 

Riney's School — Reading only Taught — Hazel's School — 
How to get the Money — Indiana a Free State — Few and 
Poor Schools — Four Miles Away — The Lincoln Library 

— Religious Advantages — Elder Elkins — Reading the 
Bible — Familiar with Bible through Life — Incidents of 
His Parents' desire to Educate him — Decision to Move to 
Indiana — Gallaher's Interest — A Conversation — Land 
Titles — Real Cause of Removal to Indiana, a Free State . 32 

III. 
THE OLD HOME SOLD. 

Colby's Arrival — His Proposition — It Awakens Surprise — 
The Farm Sold for Whiskey — Not Singular then — Prep- 
arations to Move — Settlement — Starting on Flatboat — 



IO CONTENTS. 



On the Ohio — Upset in the River — Saved — Recovery of 
part of Goods — Thompson's Ferry — Moved by Posey to 
Interior — Gave Boat for Moving — Spot Selected — Going 
back for Family — Heroism of Western Females then — 
Indians — Seven Days on the Journey 42 

IV. 
A NEW HOME MADE. 

The Axe a Symbol of Pioneer Life — Strength Developed — 
Incident Forty Years Later — Erecting a Half-faced Camp 

— How Abe began Pioneer life — Built Log-house next Year 

— Described — Putting up a Bed — Making Table and 
Stools — Abe's Parlor Chamber — The Home-made Grist- 
mill — Process of making it — How Pioneer Families got 
Meal — Reading in his new Home — Improving in Pen- 
manship — Surroundings described — No Water near — 
How got this Farm — Spencer County — State of Society 
two Years later, and Physical Condition described by 
Turnham — Mrs. Lincoln against Drinking Customs . . 56 



AFTER GAME. 

His First Shot — Talking over Loss on Ohio — The Flock 
of Turkeys — A large one killed — Abe Lincoln surprised 
— Dependent on Hunting for Food — Skill of Pioneer 
Hunters — Their Standard — Snuffing a Candle — Arrival 
of Thomas and Betsey Sparrow — A happy day — God- 
send to Abraham 70 

VI. 

DARKER DAYS. 

Hungry for Knowledge — Wants other Books than Bible — 
The " Milk-Disease" — Mr. and Mrs. Sparrow sick — Nurs- 
ing them — Their Death and Burial — Mrs. Lincoln's brief 
Sickness — Neighbors' Sympathy and Skill — Her speedy 



CONTENTS. I 1 



Death — Buried on the Knoll — Abe's Letter to Parson 
Elkins — His first Letter — Neighbors surprised — Writing 
Letters for them — Parson Elkins comes — His Welcome — 
His Funeral Sermon — Impression upon Abraham — Char- 
acter and Power of Pioneer Preachers — A Remarkable Ex- 
ample — These Preachers and Abraham's early life . . .76 



VII. 
BRIGHTER HOURS. 

Copy of Pilgrim's Progress — His surprise — .^Esop's Fables 

— A Treasure and its Influence — Books Interfere with 
Work — His Father's Reproof — Writing Name on the 
Earth — Charged with Laziness — The Charge Repelled 

— Common to call Students lazy — None Lazy who Im- 
prove every Moment — At Baldwin's Shop — Seeking enter- 
tainment — Ramsay's Life of Washington read — Robinson 
Crusoe his delight 93 

VIII. 

A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 

Mr. Lincoln's Home Untidy — Need of a Wife and Mother — 
Remembers a Friend of his early Manhood — Married — 
Brings his Bride Home — Her "Household Stuff" — The 
second Mrs. Lincoln better Educated than the first — Has 
Floor made and Windows supplied — Abraham's Welcome 
to his Stepmother and her Children — What Dennis Hanks 
says — Dennis Married one of her Daughters — Dorsey 
opens School — School-house described — Arithmetic — 
"Trapping up" — Crawford's School — Crawford's In- 
fluence — His Prophecy about Abe — Example of Abe's 
Honesty — What Nat Grigsby says — Abe's Compositions — 
Opposes Cruelty to Animals — Defends a Terrapin — His 
Plea — Crawford's Praise— The Rule of Three — Peace- 
maker — An Example — Best Spelling — Spelling D-e-f-i-e-d 

— Teaching "Manners" — Abe's Appearance — Swaney's 
School — John Hanks 103 



12 CONTENTS. 



IX. 

BORROWING AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 

Talk about Washington — Weems' Life of Washington — 
Borrowing the Book — Consequences of Borrowing Books 
— Pleasant Hours — A Rain ruins the Book — Sorrowing 
over it — Proposition to Crawford, the Owner — His Ex- 
tortion — A hard Man — Cuts three Acres of Fodder to 
Pay for Book — Afterwards Worked for Crawford, with 
his Sister— " The Kentucky Preceptor " — Appearance of 
Josiah Crawford — His Nose in Abe's Verse and " Chron- 
icles" — What Mrs. Crawford says about his being Pres- 
ident — Abraham Kicked seriously by a Horse — " Cluck," 120 

X. 

WORKING AND WINNING. 

Society about him — Mrs. Crawford's Description — Popu- 
lation increased — People superstitious — Examples of 
superstition — Influence on Abraham — Becomes a Ferry- 
man, Farmer, Hostler, and House-servant — Reads His- 
tory of the United States at Night — Employer's Son his 
Bedfellow — Abe's late Reading vexes him — What he Said 
about Abe Twenty Years after — Hog-killing — Became 
a Butcher — His Sister Married — He Writes a Poem for 
the Occasion — His Presence demanded at Parties — 
Works for Jones the Store-keeper — Variety of Work — 
Reads Life of Franklin — Reads a Newspaper here — Dis- 
cusses Politics — Life of Henry Clay — Visits afterwards 
to Grocery — Acting the good Samaritan, himself the 
Horse — Saved a Man 132 

XL 

UPWARD AND ONWARD. 

How Abraham was regarded — What John Hanks says — 
Mr. Lamon's words — His Mother's Testimony — The 
Scrap-book — His Mother's Tribute to Herndon — Read- 



CONTENTS. 1 3 



ing and "Preaching about" — The Eccentric Preacher 
and Abraham's imitation — His Father stopping it — 
Foundation of Greatness laid here — Working for Mr. 
Wood — The Temperance Paper, and Writing for it — 
The Political Paper, and Writing for it — Excitement 
over the Pioneer Writer — Substance of his Political 
Article — Just what he Wrote when President — Abra- 
ham's Temperance Principles — His Original Copies in 
Verse — Hunting a Necessity — Wild Animals there — 
Plays and Games — Abraham's great Strength .... 145 

XII. 

ON THE FLATBOAT. 

Works for Mr. Gentry — A Flatboat Trip to New Orleans 
Proposed — Account of Flatboating — Consent of Parents 
to go — His Mother's Apprehensions — Preparations — 
Talk with Miss Robyon Astronomy — What she Thought 
Forty Years after — The Trip described — A Rough Life 

— A Bloody Contest with Madame Bushane's Slaves — 
The Sequel — The Trip successful — Return Home . . . 158 

XIII. 
SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 

Trading Trip — His first Dollar for Service — Looking higher 

— Call on Mr. Woods — Disappointed Hope — Another 
Log-cabin — The Statutes of Indiana — Studying and 
Reading at David Turnham's — Going to Court — The 
Murder Trial — Meeting the Shelby Boy and President — 
The Gentryville Lyceum — Questions Discussed — Place 
for the Enslaved — Abe's Appearance — Centre of Attrac- 
tion — The Foolish Act and the Outcome — How he 
Learned — Dennis Hanks' Eulogy — Talk of Removing 

to Illinois 169 

XIV. 
OFF TO ILLINOIS. 

The Families to Remove — How they Went — Abe of Age 

— Will not Leave his Father and Mother — Scripps — 



14 CONTENTS. 



His Description of Moving — Two Hundred Miles — Bad 
Roads and Swollen Streams — The Kaskaskia — Uncle 
John's House — The Spot to Settle — Building a Log- 
house — The Fifteen Acres — Ploughing, Rail-splitting, 
and Fencing — Mrs. Brown's Story, and Abe's Bedfellow 

— George Chase's Story — Splitting Rails, and Reading 

— Attacked by Fever and Ague — Useful — A Hard 
Winter 180 

XV. 

ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 
Denton Offutt's Proposition — Who is Abe — His Step- 
brother — The Plan and Pay — Start for Springfield — 
Boat not Ready — Abe Proposes to Build one — Repair to 
Spring Creek — Merry Times — Discussions — The Jug- 
gler — Description of Abe again — Boat Finished, and 
Cargo — Stuck on Rutledge's Dam — Abe's Ingenuity — 
The Spectators — Success and Cheers — Offutt's Opinion 

— Abraham's Invention afterwards — The Patent Office 

— Loading Wild Hogs — Sewing up their Eyes — The 
Voyage Down the River — Horrified by Slavery — Prov- 
idence leading — Return — Offutt hires Abe to keep Store 

— Walks from St. Louis — The Famous Wrestler — Abe's 
Magnanimity 191 

XVI. 
IN A PIONEER STORE. 
Going to New Salem — Waiting — Acting as Polling Clerk 

— Going on Flatboat to Beardstown — Oftutt coming with 
Goods — Installed " Storekeeper" — Care of Saw-mill too 

— W. G. Green, Assistant Clerk — His Popularity in the 
Store — His Honesty — Examples of it — Silencing the 
Drunken Bully — Minter Graham and Pinkham's Gram- 
mar — How Abraham Found and Studied it — Lamon's 
Words — Studied in Cooper's Shop — Great Progress — 
Talk with Alley — His Estimate of Grammar — Meeting 
Richard Bates — Spilling the Milk and Breaking Bowl — 
A Noble Trait — Mastered Grammar — Its Blessing to 
him thereafter _ 204 



CONTENTS. J 5 



XVII. 
STILL A CLERK. 
The Clary's Grove Boys - Their Aim - Description of 
th e m _ Ruffians - How they Attacked Abraham - Dis- 
pute with Offutt-Jack Wrestling with Abraham -How 
Abraham Settled the Trouble -The Clary Grove Boys 
Lose Power-"Honest Abe"-Jack's Trouble with a 
Stran-er- Abraham reconciles them - Abraham Builds 
a Pi-pen -Debating Clubs -Dr. Holland's Account - 
The Talisman Navigating the Sangamon- Abraham a 
Pilot -Herndon's Account - Offutt's Poor Bargains and 
Failure — Dr. Holland on Abraham's Standing • • • ■ 



220 



XVIII. 
ON THE WAR PATH. 

The Black Hawk War -Abraham Resolves to Enlist - 
Others follow -A Company formed in New Salem - 
How chosen Captain - Abraham's Speech -" Captain 
Lincoln"- He Lifts a Barrel of Whiskey -His Views of 
Betting, and Whiskey -Lecture to Green -Going into 
Camp, and End of War - Incidents -The Friendly In- 
dian and General Cass - Abraham's Courage and Power 
_ His Life in Danger -The Greatest Athlete- Wrestles 
with Thompson - His Uprightness - Securing the Rights 
of his Volunteer Company - Irwin's Tribute to him as a 
Soldier — Abraham's Humorous Speech about it in Con- 
gress . 

XIX. 

UNSOUGHT HONORS. 
After his Return from War -Thinks of Learning Black- 
■ smith's Trade -Candidate for the Legislature - His lalk 
with Green and Surprise - How he Consented, and the 
Lyceum -Nominated, and first Speech- Address to 
Voters of the Country - His Comical Dress -Not Elected 
-Advised to Study Law - An Honest Calling -No 



230 



1 6 CONTENTS. 



Confidence in himself — Desires Permanent Occupation 

— Becomes a Merchant again — The National Debt — His 
Failure — What Books Read — Synopsis of all he Read — 
Old Copy of Blackstone — What McHenry says — Assists 
Ellis in the Store — What Ellis says of him — What 
Papers Read — How Avoided Interruptions — Meeting 
John Calhoun — Becomes Surveyor — His Success — 
Reforms New Salem — Makes Jack behave — Umpire at 
Horse-race — How Worked for Short — Appointed Post- 
master — Office in his Hat 243 

XX. 

LAURELS WON. 

Elected Representative in 1834 — Dr. Barrett's View — Re- 
fused to " Treat " his Friends — Close Study — How Ob- 
tained a New Suit of Clothes and Interview with Smoot 

— Pocket-money — Infidels and Infidel Books — In the 
Legislature — John T. Stuart Advises him to Study Law 

— His Generous Aid — Henry Clay — Decides to Study 
Law — Self-denial and Companions — Walking Twenty- 
two Miles for Books — Like Cicero — Elected again in 
1S36 — Surveying and Studying — Prevents Violence at a 
Political Meeting — Flaying a Politician Alive — Who 
Met in Legislature — The Long Nine — Face to Face with 
Slavery — Firm Stand with Dan Stone — Admitted to 
Bar in 1837 — Elected for Third Term in 1838 — His Firm 
Temperance Principles — Addressing Young Men's Ly- 
ceum — Elected Fourth Time in 1S40 — Quelling a 
Political Mob — Silencing a Legislator with a. Story — 
Stuart and Logan — Married — Letters of Friendship 
Revealing his Heart 261 

XXI. 

SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 

His Practice and Poverty — Circuit Court — House Enlarged 
in his Absence — Horse, Saddle-bags, and Buggy — His 
Character — Not Defend a Client in Wrong — An Inter- 
esting Case — The Old Negress and Her Son Redeemed 



CONTENTS. 17 



— Colonel Baker and Lincoln — What Judge Treat re- 
lates — Deluded into a Wrong Case — Refused to Defend 
his Client when Convinced he was Guilty — Another 
Case — A Suit against a Railroad — Refused $250 Offered 
him — What Gillespie Thought of him as a Lawyer — 
What Sparks said of him — How he Saved Jack Arm- 
strong's Son from the Gallows — Aunt Hannah and her 
Gratitude — His Eloquence and Power — How he As- 
sisted Aunt Hannah afterwards — Released her Son from 
the Army when President — What his Associate said of 
nis Plea — Habits of Study — Sending Money to Parents 

— Spends $750 for his Mother — Letter to his Dying 
Father — Testimony of Judge Davis and Judge Drum- 
mond 279 

XXII. 

THE RISING STATESMAN. 
Candidate for Congress — Henry Clay — Generosity to a 
Client — Takes Seat in Congress Dec. 6, 1847 — Opposes 
Mexican War and Annexation of Texas — Popularity in 
Congress — Devotes Himself to Self-improvement — 
Retirement — Occasional Political and Temperance 
Speeches — Aroused by Breaking Missouri Compromise 

— Takes the Field of Controversy — Replying to Douglas 

— Great Speech — Great Success — Candidate for United 
States Senator — Magnanimous Withdrawal in Favor of 
Turnbull — Republican Party of Illinois Organized, his 
Speech — Candidate for Vice-President in 1856 — In Fre- 
mont Campaign — His Prophecies of Bloodshed — Can- 
didate for United States Senator in 1S58 — His Victorious 
Debates with Douglas — His " House-Divided-Against- 
Itself Speech" — Interview with Herndon and Others — 
Result of the Canvas — His Tribute to Declaration of 
Independence ,. 297 

XXIII. 

GOING UP HIGHER. 
State Convention of Illinois — Lincoln Invited to Platform — 
The Hurrah — The Old Democrat and Rails — Criticism of 



1 8 CONTENTS. 



Democrat — Convention puts him forward for President 

— Incidents a Year Before — An Old Friend in New York 

— At Five-Points Mission — Dr. Gulliver's Account of 
Interview with him — National Republican Convention at 
Chicago — The Candidates — Lincoln Nominated on Third 
Ballot — A Hurricane of Applause — News at Springfield 

— Scenes — His Temperance Principles come to the Front 
again — Effect at the South — His Visitors many — Amus- 
ing Incidents — His Height — The Scanty Dinner — Han- 
nah Armstrong — Incidents in Chicago — His Election to 
the Presidency — Dramatic Scene in Presence of Mr. 
Bateman — His Confidence in Bible and Prayer — Child 
of Providence — Went to see his Mother, a Touching 
Scene — People Fear his Assassination — Speech to Neigh- 
bors on Leaving for Washington — Trip there — Plot to 
Assassinate him 311 

XXIV. 

LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 

What he Did — Incidents Tell the Story — Inauguration — 
His Address — Reading Address to Family — His Cabinet 

— Words with a Senator — Depended on Patriotism of the 
People — The Previous Administration — Lincoln's Story 

— Interview with Senator Douglas — Call for 75,000 
Troops — Support of Douglas — First Gun of the Re- 
bellion — Fall of Sumter — Effect — He Ruled and no 
one else — Rejects Cameron's Advice — Refused to Re- 
taliate — Refused to Remove Cameron — Criticizes a 
Committee's Report — The Smith Case — His Firmness 

— Thrusts an Officer out of his Room — Sickness and 
Death in his Family — Mrs. Pomroy's Interview — 
Watching with Sick Tad — Talk with Mrs. Pomroy upon 
Religion — Reciting her Experience — Twice — Thrice — 
Prayer and the War — The Midnight Telegram — Willie's 
Funeral — The Senator — His Mother's Bible — Institut- 
ing Prayer for Soldiers — Pleasing Incident — His Inter- 
view with Dr. Vinton — A Devoted Father — His Deep 
Sorrow — Defence of his Stories — His Wit — His Mag- 
nanimity — Art of Putting Things — Several Illustrations 



CONTENTS. 19 



— What a Writer Says — His Religious Character — Trust 
in Providence — Orders to Prevent Sabbath-breaking and 
Profanity — Temperance — His Literary Ability — Illus- 
trations — Address at Dedication of National Cemetery . 333 

XXV. 

HIS GREAT INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 

Father Abraham" — "The Boys" — His Opinion Ex- 
pressed — Spoke from Experience — Would not Yield 
Care of Soldiers — Daily Routine — Night-work — Sol- 
diers before Senators — A Soldier and his Mother — The 
Baby — Boy on the Ottawa — The Drummer Boy — A 
Mother Asks for a Son — The Handsomest Man — Rests 
in Pardoning the "Boys" — The Four Telegrams — Do 
him no Good to Shoot him — The Vermont "Boy" — 
Blood and Remission of Sins — Rebel Sympathizer — 
Shaking the Hands of Five Thousand Soldiers — The 
Rebel Soldier — Extracts from Letters — Sorrow over 
Slain Soldiers — Dr. Holland's Words and Facts — His 
Praise of General Garfield — His Letter to a Mother — In 
terest in Soldiers' Aid Societies — Letter and Speeches — 
Joy over Relief for Soldiers — Pity for "Boys" in Rebel 
Prisons — Retaliation — Visiting Rebel Prisoners — The 
Penitent — Herndon's Eulogy — Climax of the Sacrifice . 372 

XXVI. 

HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 

' Liberator of a Race " — His Sentiments Stated — Letter to 
Greeley — Sojourner Truth — Frederick Douglas — Chil- 
dren of Concord — Counting Greenbacks for a Negro — 
Colored Delegation from Louisiana — Protection of Col- 
ored Soldiers, his Order — Refusing to give up Colored 
Soldiers — Refused to Pardon Slave-Trader — Committed 
to Negro Suffrage — Reverence of Colored Soldiers for 
him — Negroes in Virginia — Their Joy over Lincoln in 
Richmond — Colonel McKaye's Account of them — Their 
Gift of a Bible — Of Wax Flowers — Asking for Procla- 
mation of Emancipation — First Proposed Freedom — 



20 CONTENTS. 



Cabinet Meeting — Proclamation Issued — His Signature 

— Carpenter's Painting — Copy of Proclamation — Words 

of Colfax 4°i 

XXVII. 

STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 

Re-nomination — The Soldiers for him — The German — 
Call for 500,000 Troops — His Re-election — Reply to 
Committee — Its Effect — Second Inauguration — His 
Address Remarkable — Copy of it — Sumner's Words — 
Civil Service Reform — Office-seekers — Going to City 
Point — His Telegrams — Fall of Richmond — Lincoln 
enters the City — At Jeff Davis's Headquarters — Reading 
Shakespeare — Surrender of Lee — National Joy — Sum- 
ner Classes Lincoln with Washington 420 

XXVIII. 

SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 

Threats of Assassination — His Remarks — Objected to 
Guards — Colonel Halpine's Appeal — Plot to Abduct him 

— Robert Lincoln's Return — Ford's Theatre — Ashmun 
and Colfax — The Fatal Shot — The Assassin — Fearful 
Excitement — Seward Wounded — Death-bed Scene — 
Terrible Night — The Assassin — Assassin Caught — A 
Fact about Booth — Lincoln and William of Orange — 
Description of the Nation's Sorrow — The Sabbath — Ven- 
geance in New York — Garfield's Words — Grief of Col- 
ored People — Letter from Charleston, S. C. — A Friend's 
Story down South — Foreign Sympathy — Victoria — 
Eugenie — France — Italy — Belgium, etc. — Tributes of 
Bancroft and Speaker Colfax 433 

XXIX. 

FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 

Preparation for Funeral — Action of Congress — Lying in 
State — The City in Black — Funeral in East Room — Dr. 



CONTENTS. 21 



Gurley's Eloquent Tribute — Ceremonies at the Capitol — 
Vast Multitude — Ceremonies throughout the Land — 
Floral Tributes — Funeral Train to Springfield — Scene 
in Baltimore — Sorrow in every Village — Philadelphia in 
Tears — Prophetic Words — Tribute of New York — Mot- 
toes — Other Cities — The Scene at Midnight — Funeral 
at Chicago and Springfield — Closing Tributes .... 449 



XXX. 

ORATION. 

By Hon. George Bancroft 459 




Birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. 




CHAPTER I. 

BIRTHPLACE. 

|HE miserable log cabin which the artist fur- 
nishes further on in this chapter, tells the 
tale of poverty and lowliness into which 
Abraham Lincoln was born. It was a floor- 
less, doorless, windowless shanty, situated in one of 
the most barren and desolate spots of Hardin county, 
Kentucky. His father made it his home simply be- 
cause he was too poor to own a better one. Nor was 
his an exceptional case of penury and want. For the 
people of that section were generally poor and un- 
lettered, barely able to scrape enough together to keep 
the wolf of hunger from their abodes. 

Here Abraham Lincoln was born February 12th, 
1809. His father's name was Thomas Lincoln; his 
mother's maiden name was Nancy Hanks. When 
they were married, Thomas was twenty-eight years of 
age, and Nancy, his wife, twenty-three. They had 
been married three years when Abraham was born. 
Their cabin was in that part of Hardin County which is 
now embraced in La Rue County, a few miles from 
Hodgensville — on the south fork of Nolin Creek. A 
perennial spring of water, gushing in silvery brightness 
from beneath a rock near by, relieved the barrenness of 



24 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the location, and won for it the somewhat ambitious 
name — " Rock Spring Farm." 

" How came Thomas Lincoln here ? " the reader will 
ask, "Whence did he come?" "Who were his an- 
cestors ? " . • 

Thomas Lincoln was born in Rockingham County, 
Virginia, in 1778. Two years later (in 1780), his 
father lured by the stories of the remarkable fertility 
of the soil in Kentucky, and the rapid growth of the 
population, removed thither for a permanent abode. 
He had five children at the time — three sons and two 
daughters — and Thomas was the youngest child but 
one. He settled in Mercer, now Bullitt County. 

Then, a hundred years ago, the Indians in that re- 
gion, and throughout the whole north-west territory, 
were deadly hostile to the whites. The pioneer " took 
his life into his hands " by removing thither. His rifle 
was his constant companion, that he might defend 
himself against the savage foe, whether at home or 
abroad. If he went to the field to plough or build 
fence, or into the woods to chop, his rifle was indispen- 
sable. He knew not when or where the wily Indian 
would surprise him. 

Four years after the father of Thomas Lincoln 
moved into Kentucky, he went into the field to 
build fence. He took Thomas, who was then about 
six years old, with him, and sent his two older sons, 
Mordecai and Josiah, to work in another field not far 
away. While busily engaged in putting up fence, a 
party of Indians in ambush fired at the father and he 
fell dead. The sons were terribly frightened, and little 
Thomas was well-nigh paralyzed. Josiah ran to a stock- 



BIRTHPLACE. 2$ 



ade two miles off, and Mordecai, the eldest, ran to the 
cabin, from the loft of which, through a loop-hole, he 
could see the Indians. A savage was in the act of 
lifting his little brother from the ground, whereupon 
Mordecai, aiming his gun through the hole in the loft, 
fired, and killed the "redskin." The latter fell to the 
ground instantly and Thomas ran for his life to the 
cabin. Mordecai continued at his post, blazing away 
at the head of every Indian who peered from the un- 
derbrush. Soon, however, Josiah arrived from the 
stockade with a party of settlers ; and the savages fled, 
leaving their dead comrade and a wounded one behind 
them. Mordecai had done good execution with his rifle. 

That was the darkest day that the family of Abra- 
ham Lincoln's grandfather ever knew. The lifeless 
form of their strong protector, borne into their humble 
cabin, made it desolate indeed. Who would defend 
them now ? To whom would they look for bread ? 
A home in the wilderness was hardship enough, but 
the fatal shot of the savage multiplied hardships an 
hundred fold. 

Abraham Lincoln often listened, in his boyhood, to 
this tale of woe in his grandfather's cabin. It was a 
chapter of family history too startling and important 
to be passed over with a single rehearsal. It was 
stereotyped and engraved upon Abraham's young 
heart, with many other reminiscences and facts con- 
nected with life in Kentucky at that early day. His 
father was a great story-teller, and was noted for his 
"yarns," and besides, a sort of pride prompted the 
recital of this exciting chapter of family history, with 
scenes that preceded it. 



26 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" It would take me a week," he would say, " to tell 
you all I have heard your grandpa say about those 
dark days. The very year he came here, 1780, the 
Indians attacked the settlers in great force. All the 
men were ordered to organize into companies, and 
Daniel Boone, ' the great hunter of Kentucky,' who 
settled there five years before the Lincolns did, was 
made a lieutenant-colonel, and all the forces were 
put under the charge of General Clark. They started 
to meet the enemy, and found them near the Lower 
Blue Licks. Here they fought a terrible battle, and 
the Indians beat, and cut up the whites badly. Boone's 
son was wounded, and his father tried to carry him 
away in the retreat. He plunged into the river with 
him on his back, but the boy died before he reached 
the other side. By the time Boone got over the river, 
he looked around and saw that the Indians were swim- 
ming after him ; so he had to throw down his dead son, 
and run for his life. He got away and reached Bry- 
ant's Station in safety. Before that, the Indians cap- 
tured three little girls and carried them off. They be- 
longed to the fort at Boonesboro, and one of them was 
Boone's daughter. They were playing with a canoe in 
the Kentucky river, and crossed over to the other side, 
when a party of Indians rushed out of the bushes into 
the river and drew the canoe ashore. The girls were 
scared almost to death, and screamed so loud that 
they were heard at the fort. The men in the fort 
ran out to help them, but by the time they reached the 
canoe, the savages had fled with the girls. It 
was almost night — too late to organize and pursue 
them, and so they spent the night in mustering all 



BIRTHPLACE. 2J 



the men they could and started after them at break of 
day. But it was well nigh the close of the next day 
when the settlers came in sight of the Indians, forty 
miles off. They had camped for the night, and were 
cooking their supper. Fearing that the Indians would 
kill the girls rather than give them up, it was the plan 
of the settlers to shoot them so suddenly that they 
would have no time to kill the girls. So they banged 
away at the .savages, all of them together, as soon as 
they came in sight of them, taking good care not to hit 
the children. Not one shot hit an Indian, but the at^ 
tack was so sudden and uproarious, that the red-skins 
were scared half out of their wits ; and they ran away 
as fast as their legs could carry them, leaving the girls 
and their weapons behind." 

Abraham's young life was regaled with many such 
"yarns" — real facts of history — belonging to the 
times and experience of his ancestors. Whatever 
may have been the effect of these " harrowing tales " 
upon his mind, it is quite certain that he must have 
seen, by contrast, that his own condition, with all its 
want and woe, was a decided improvement upon that 
of his grandfather's family. 

But to return to our story, Abraham's grandmother 
removed after her husband was shot ; and Thomas, 
his father, was compelled to shift for himself as soon as 
he was old enough to work for his living. Being a 
rover by nature, and under the necessity of supporting 
himself, he wandered about from place to place in 
search of jobs, and took up his abode wherever there 
was a chance to earn his bread and butter. He was 
not very enterprising, nor particularly industrious at 



28 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

this period of his life. He loved a roving life too well 
and was too well satisfied with jolly companions to 
mean business. His wandering career, however, 
showed him much of the world, and furnished the 
opportunity to store his mind with anecdotes and some 
useful information, which he made frequent use of in 
after years, and by reason of which, he became very 
popular with his associates. 

When Thomas Lincoln was about twenty-six years 
of age, he went to live with Joseph Hanks, a carpenter, 
of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, to learn his trade. It 
was here that he met Nancy Hanks, niece of Joseph 
Hanks, whom he courted and afterwards married, 
thereby getting, not only a trade, but a wife, also. 
The latter, however, was much more of an acquisition 
than the former ; for he was never competent to do 
any but the roughest work at his trade. When he 
was married to Nancy he set up housekeeping in a 
more miserable abode at Elizabethtown than the log 
cabin on Nolin Creek. From this shanty, into which 
he took his bride, he soon removed to the other shanty 
on the aforesaid Creek. 

This is how and why Thomas Lincoln, father of 
Abraham, became the proprietor of the rickety habi- 
tation in Hardin county, that we have described to the 
reader. Here three children were born to him ; Sarah, 
the eldest, Abraham next, and Thomas the third. The 
latter died in infancy. 

Thomas Lincoln could neither read nor write. He 
had not been to school a single day in his life. His 
wife could read passably, but she could not write suffi- 
ciently to undertake a letter. She could sign her 



BIRTHPLACE. 29 



name to a document, and perhaps do a little more in the 
same line ; while her husband could only make his mark. 

"You can learn," said his bride to him, soon after the 
twain became one flesh. "Never too old to learn." 

"That's a question," responded her husband, who 
was one of the easy bodies, who could scarcely think 
it worth while for a man to go to school, even to his 
wife, at twenty-eight years of age. 

" It's not a question at all," responded Mrs. L. 
" You can learn to write your name, if nothing more, 
and that will be a great improvement over making 
your mark. I can teach you as much as that." 

At length the good-natured husband consented to 
take lessons of his wife in penmanship; and he ac- 
tually set to work to accomplish his purpose. The 
most that he accomplished, however, was to learn to 
write his name so that ingenious people could read it. 
He lifted himself out of that ignorant and unambi- 
tious class who are content to make their X . 

At this time Thomas Lincoln and his wife were 
members of the Ftaptist Church, showing that they 
cast in their lot with the best people of the county, 
and aspired to a Christian life. Mrs. Lincoln was a 
more devout follower of Christ than her husband, and 
was more gifted mentally. Dr. Holland says : " She 
was a slender, pale, sad, and sensitive woman, with 
much in her nature that was truly heroic, and much 
that shrank from the rude life around her." Lamon 
says : " By her family her understanding was consid- 
ered something wonderful." There is no doubt that 
she was a bright, sensible, brave Christian woman, 
whose father removed from Virginia into Kentucky 



30 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

about the time that the father of Thomas Lincoln did. 
Thomas appears to have been satisfied with his choice, 
and her influence over him was strong and elevating. 

When Abraham was four years old, his father re- 
moved to a more fertile and picturesque spot on Knob 
Creek, six miles from Hodgensville. This creek emp- 
ties into the Rolling Fork, the Rolling Fork into Salt 
River, and Salt River into the Ohio, twenty-four miles 
from Louisville. How so poor a man could purchase 
so much of a farm (two hundred and thirty-eight acres) 
for one hundred and eighteen pounds, seems myste- 
rious, until we learn the fact that, at the end of the 
year, he sold two hundred acres for one hundred 
pounds, reserving but thirty-eight acres for himself. 
But even this condition of his affairs shows a decided 
advance in contrast with the pitiable poverty that in- 
ducted him into wedded life. Then, too, the fact that 
he aspired after a more fertile and attractive location, 
and actually planted from six to eight acres the first 
year of his residence on Knob Creek, proves that the 
spirit of a larger enterprise possessed his soul. Some- 
how his marriage to Nancy Hanks had raised him above 
that restless, thriftless, aimless life that characterized 
his youth and early manhood. 

It was on Knob Creek that Abraham, or "Abe," as 
he was familiarly called by his parents and other people, 
was initiated into fishing and other sports. On Nolin 
Creek he hunted "ground-hogs" with a precocious 
boy, Johnnie Duncan, who afterwards became quite 
widely known as Rev. John Duncan. On Knob Creek,, 
he played in the water, took long tramps, and enjoyed 
himself generally with one Billy Gallaher. For a boy 



BIRTHPLACE. 3 1 



of his age (but six or seven at that time) he was ad- 
venturous and enterprising. One of his venturesome 
sports was, to catch hold of a branch of a sycamore 
tree and swing over the water. One day, when indul- 
ging in this risky sport, with his no less venturesome 
Billy, he lost his hold of the limb and plunged into the 
water. If Billy had not been a cool, smart, efficient 
boy, Thomas Lincoln would have lost a good son on 
that day, and the United States of America a good 
President. But Billy was equal to the occasion, and, 
by brave efforts, succeeded in delivering "Abe" from 
a watery grave. 

Another boy, Dennis F. Hanks, his cousin, was one 
of his boon companions, though a little older than him- 
self. Thomas Sparrow, who reared Nancy Hanks to 
womanhood (Mrs. Lincoln), had given Dennis a home 
in his family, and Sparrow was now a neighbor of 
Thomas Lincoln, and Dennis and "Abe" playmates. 
Dennis was a great lover of hunting and fishing, and 
"Abe" accompanied him upon many a long tramp, 
though he was not old enough to use fire-arms; nor 
did he ever become expert in either hunting or fishing. 

The Lincoln cabin on Knob Creek was very little 
better than the one on Nolin Creek. It was a floorless 
log-house, with one room below and a loft above, and 
the usual accompaniment of stools, skillet, and Dutch 
oven. Here "Abe" began to show signs of remark- 
able brightness, as evinced by his tact, intelligence and 
aims. It was noticeable that he was more precocious 
than other children of his age ; and his parents were 
not slow to perceive and appreciate the fact. The 
next chapter presents him in a new role. 




CHAPTER II. 

A SCHOOLBOY. 

INEY is going to keep school," remarked Mr. 
Lincoln to his wife, one day, "and he wants 
to know if Sarah and Abe will go." 
"I hope so, certainly, though he can't be 
much of a teacher any way," replied Mrs. Lincoln. 
"A poor school is better than none." 

" There can be no doubt about that," continued Mr. 
Lincoln. " It won't take Riney long to tell the chil- 
dren all he knows ; but that is better than nothing." 

" He can't write nor cipher," added his wife, "and 
a man who can't do that can't be much of a reader." 

" Well, reading is all he claims," said Mr. Lincoln. 
" He has nothing to do with figures or writing. He 
proposes to teach boys and girls what he knows, and 
nothing more." 

"That's about all the best of them can do, — teach 
what they know," — Mrs. Lincoln answered. "To 
attempt more would be foolish indeed." 

This Hezekiah Riney was a new comer, and he had 
settled within a half mile of Lincoln's cabin. He was 
a rough, ignorant man, with scarcely one qualification 
for a teacher, even in that wild untutored country. 



A SCHOOLBOY. 33 



But he wanted to eke out a miserable subsistence by 
adding a few dollars to his pitiable income ; and so he 
proposed school-keeping as about the only thing pos- 
sible in that barren country. Parents accepted the 
proposition because there was nothing better ; and 
here the hero of this volume began to be a schoolboy, 
accompanying his sister Sarah daily to Riney's cabin. 
"Abe" made some progress at this school — he 
began to read. A dilapidated copy of Dillworth's 
spelling-book was the only volume the two children of 
Tom Lincoln had between them at this Riney insti- 
tution, and they appear to have made good use of it. 
The brightness of the pupils was a pleasant offset to 
the stupidity of the teacher. 

Riney's school, for some reason, was of short dura- 
tion ; it closed in five or six weeks. Perhaps the 
fountain ran dry in that time. Possibly some of the 
scholars knew more than their master at the end of 
that period, which is not claiming very much for the 
pupils. At any rate, " Abe " and his sister trans- 
ferred their destiny to another "pioneer college," as, 
forty years afterwards, Abraham Lincoln facetiously 
called those cabin-schools of the woods. 

" Mr. Hazel knows a heap more than Riney," said 
Mr. Lincoln, " and we must try to have the children 
go to his school, though it is a long way off." 

" Yes ; it is time that ' Abe knew something about 
writing,' and Hazel can learn him that," Mrs. L. re- 
plied. " The children won't mind the distance. If 
we can scrape together enough to pay for their school- 
ing, they ought to go." 

The last remark touched upon a subject that was 



34 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

often uppermost in Tom Lincoln's mind, — how to get 
money enough to pay for the necessaries of life. 
Although he was satisfied with corn-cake and milk 
for daily food, yet it would require considerable in- 
genuity and economy to produce the extra money to 
pay for the schooling ; so he replied, — 

" I've counted the cost, and I guess we can raise 
the money some way. Hazel can start Abe off on 
writing, and that will be worth everything to him. 
Some day I hope to live in a country where I can 
earn something at my trade." 

" That will be some distance from here, I'm think- 
ing," replied Mrs. L. "We can't expect much growth 
in this part of the country at present. If Indiana 
comes into the Union a. free State, there may be a 
better chance there." The question of admitting 
Indiana into the Union as a free State was then 
agitating the country. The subject was before the 
American Congress, and the slave power was doing 
every thing possible to prevent such an event. The 
slaveholders of Kentucky were especially exercised 
about it, because another free State so near would be 
an additional invitation to their slaves to find an 
asylum there. The subject was discussed, pro and 
con, in every Kentucky cabin where white men dwelt. 
The Lincolns were in favor of making Indiana a free 
State. They knew full well that the curse of slavery 
blighted the prosperity of every slave State. 

" There's a better chance for every thing in a free 
State," was Mr. Lincoln's only answer. 

The reader must understand that schools were very 
scarce in Kentucky in Tom Lincoln's day ; and the 



A SCHOOLBOY. 35 



few in existence were very poor, scarcely deserving the 
name of schools. They would not be tolerated now. 
Teachers were no better than the schools ; for it is 
always true, "like teachers, like schools." Hazel's 
school was better than Riney's ; for Hazel could give 
instruction in "reading and writing." True, his ac- 
quisitions in these several branches were small indeed : 
they compared well with his surroundings. But he 
could give such a boy as Abraham a start in the right 
direction. 

Hazel's school was four miles distant ; and it was 
kept in a log schoolhouse, the only one in all that 
region. To this pioneer institution Sarah and Abra- 
ham travelled daily, carrying their dinner of corn-bread, 
without varying it a single day during the eight or ten 
weeks of their attendance. Here Abraham really 
began his career. Here he acquired the art of pen- 
manship, very imperfectly, of course ; but he learned 
to form letters, and became enthusiastic over the 
acquirement. Here, too, he made rapid progress in 
reading. Mr. Hazel discovered the elements of a 
noble character in the boy, and predicted that he 
would not always live in the woods as his father had. 
The best evidence we can find proves that Abraham 
learned about all Hazel was able to teach in the few 
weeks he was his pupil. 

All the books the Lincoln cabin could boast, at that 
^ time, were the Bible, Catechism, and the copy of Dill- 
worth's Spelling-Book, that Sarah and Abraham shared 
between them. This was a very small library even for 
a pioneer, but it was good as far as it went. Any 
library that begins with the Bible begins well. The 



$6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Catechism and Spelling-Book were suitable compan- 
ions for the Book of books. "The three safeguards 
of our country are the Bible, Sabbath, and Public 
School ; " and here they were in the Lincoln cabin, — 
elements of family and national growth. Other things 
of like value followed in due time. 

The religious advantages of that day and region 
were smaller, if possible, than the educational. There 
was no worship, nor place of worship, within many 
miles. " Parson Elkins " embraced that part of Ken- 
tucky in his circuit, so that occasionally he preached 
in the Lincoln cabin, where he was a favorite. Indeed, 
he was a favorite in all that region, and was cordially 
welcomed by all settlers who had any respect for 
religion. With this exception, public worship was 
unknown among the pioneers of that time, and Chris- 
tian families were obliged to depend upon themselves 
chiefly for Bible study and Sabbath observance. As 
Mrs. Lincoln could read, and the Bible was the only 
reading-book in the family, Abraham often heard it 
read upon the Sabbath, and other days. Before he 
learned to read, he became familiar with many of the 
narratives of the Bible. He delighted in Bible stories 
in his childhood, and never tired of listening to their 
rehearsal. As soon as he could read, the Bible became 
his reading book, in the absence of all others. Over 
and over again its narrative portions especially were 
read, until his mind became stored with Scriptural 
knowledge. As he grew older, and other reading- 
books occupied his attention, he neglected the Bible 
for them. Still, his familiarity with it in his child- 
hood made an impression for life. Though he was not 



A SCHOOLBOY. 37 



a Christian man when he entered upon his public 
career, yet he evinced a remarkable familiarity with 
the Scriptures. His conversation and public addresses 
were often enlivened by quotations and figures from 
the Bible. In the sequel it will appear that this one 
book must have been the source of that honesty, noble 
ambition, adherence to right, and dependence upon 
Providence, which signalized his public career. 

Three incidents of his life in the White House show 
his familiarity with the Bible. At one time he was 
very much annoyed by men who complained of promi- 
nent officials. To one of these parties, he said, one 
day, " Go home, my friend, and read attentively the 
tenth verse of the thirteenth chapter of Proverbs." 
That verse is, " Accuse not a servant to his master, 
lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty." General 
Fremont, whom he had relieved of his command, con- 
sented to run against him for the Presidency, after 
Lincoln's renomination for the office. A small follow- 
ing of disappointed politicians and military aspirants 
rallied around Fremont. About the time the latter 
withdrew his name, — satisfied that his candidacy would 
make more enemies than friends, — Mr. Lincoln said to 
a public man, who introduced the subject, " Look here ; 
hear this;" and he proceeded to read the following 
from the First Book of Samuel, "And every one that 
was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and 
every one that was discontented, gathered themselves 
unto him, and he became captain over them, and there 
were with him about four hundred men." 

At one time Henry Ward Beecher criticized his ad- 
ministration sharply in the " Independent," of which 



38 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he was the editor-in-chief. Several editorials of this 
character were published in that journal, and some one 
cut them out and forwarded them to Mr. Lincoln. One 
day he took them out of the envelope and read them 
all through, when he flung them upon the floor, ex- 
claiming, " Is thy servant a dog that he should do this 
thing ? " The criticisms were based on falsehoods, 
and were therefore unjust and cruel ; hence his apt 
quotation from the Bible. 

It has been said by one of Abraham Lincoln's biog- 
raphers, that his father had no interest in his educa- 
tion. The facts already cited prove such a conclusion 
to be incorrect. A father and mother whose poverty 
compelled them to live upon "hoe-cake," must have had 
a decided interest in the education of their children, to 
try to scrape together a few dollars for their tuition at 
school, and then send them four miles on foot daily 
to enjoy the coveted boon! If that be indifference to 
culture, then the more we have of it the better. That 
Thomas Lincoln and his pious wife cherished a strong 
desire for the education of their children, there can be 
no doubt ; that they saw in their son, Abraham, early 
evidence of remarkable mental powers is certain ; 
but that they expected he would ever become distin- 
guished as a public man is not true ; for there was no 
prospect whatever that he would lift the incubus of 
want and obscurity, and step out into the world of 
renown. Such an anticipation could not possibly have 
been indulged by them. 

It was the autumn of 1816. Indiana had been ad- 
mitted as a free State into the Union, and immigration 



A SCHOOLBOY. 39 



thither had already set in as a consequence. The 
excitement over freedom in Indiana had reached Ken- 
tucky, as we have said already, and Thomas Lincoln 
and wife became interested parties. They discussed 
the question of removing thither, and finally decided 
in the affirmative, provided their farm could be sold. 

" As soon as the fall work is through," was Mr. 
Lincoln's decision. 

"If you can sell," added Mrs. L., with a significant 
emphasis upon the if. " It's a hard place to sell any- 
thing here. Perhaps we shall have to stay a while 
longer." 

"There'll be somebody to buy," added Mr. L., with 
a confident air. 

" Heard anything from the man Gallaher told 
about ? " 

" Not a word ; but there's time enough yet." 

Neighbor Gallaher had met a person who desired to 
purchase a small farm like Lincoln's, and he had told 
him of Lincoln's desire to sell in October, " after the 
fall work was through." The man's name was Colby; 
and Mr. Lincoln really expected the would-be pur- 
chaser would make his appearance. His wife had 
little faith in the enterprise, although she really desired 
to remove to Indiana. The difficulty of selling a farm 
at such a time and in such a place appeared far 
greater to her than to her husband. 

"We must go soon or not at all this year," added 
Mrs. L. " Winter will overtake us in the wilderness 
before we are ready for it." 

" It will not take long to pull up stakes and locate 
in Indiana when we once get started," responded Mr. 
Lincoln. 



40 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Perhaps not ; but it will be time enough to think 
of that after we sell," suggested his wife, as if she had 
little faith that a purchaser of their farm could be 
found. "We must learn to labor and wait." 

"We've got that lesson pretty well learned now," 
responded Mr. Lincoln. "About all I've ever done 
is to labor and wait ; and if I wait much longer I may 
lose what title I have to my land now, as others have." 

"That is not impossible, as everybody about here 
knows," added Mrs. Lincoln. 

"The chances are that the title to this place may 
prove worthless, judging from the experience of 
others," continued Mr. Lincoln. "A man don't 
know whether he owns an acre of land or not about 
here." 

Great excitement prevailed in Kentucky relative to 
land-titles. Many settlers, after toiling for years 
for a livelihood, found their titles to their farms de- 
fective. The heirs of Daniel Boone were cheated out 
of every acre of land purchased by their illustrious an- 
cestor. So many had experienced trouble and heavy 
losses in this way, that almost every landholder feared 
his title might prove invalid. Thomas Lincoln shared 
this fear in common with others. One of his biogra- 
phers maintains that he removed to Indiana solely on 
this account ; — that the curse of slavery in Kentucky, 
or the advantages of freedom in the new State of 
Indiana, had nothing to do with his decision. But 
we beg leave to dissent from this conclusion. There 
can be no doubt that the uncertainty of land-titles in 
Kentucky was one important reason for his removal, 
but it was by no means the only reason. Another 



A SCHOOLBOY. 4 1 



reason, without doubt, was his love of change. His 
roving disposition was not entirely eradicated. But, 
more than all, the excitement over the making of 
another free State, with the rose-colored views promul- 
gated concerning the advantages of a free State to poor 
men like himself, influenced him to make the change. 
It is positive that he would not have removed to Indiana 
at all had it come into the Union as a Slave State. The 
general enthusiasm over its admission in the interest 
of freedom, lured him thither as it did hundreds of 
others. The very rapid immigration to that State, 
commencing immediately after its admission, is con- 
clusive proof of this statement. The reason of his 
locating just where he did in Indiana was, probably, 
because a former acquaintance — Thomas Carter — 
had removed thither. But the next chapter will 
disclose the details of this affair. 




CHAPTER III. 

THE OLD HOME SOLD. 

BOUT the middle of October (1816) a 
stranger appeared at the cabin. It was 
Colby. 
" You want to sell your place, I hear," he 
remarked, after introducing himself. 

"I'm thinking of it," answered Mr. Lincoln. "Galla- 
her told me that you would come to see me about it. 
So we've been expecting you, and rather making 
arrangements to sell the farm. This is about what you 
would like ? " 

" Yes, from Mr. Gallaher's description of it. I can't 
handle rrmch of a place ; I'm too poor for that." 

" In the same boat with the rest of us, then," sug- 
gested Mr. Lincoln. " Not much money in these dig- 
gings. How much money can you put into a place ?" 

" Not much, just now. I must make a barter trade 
if I buy now. What's the damage for such a place as 
this ? " 

"Three hundred dollars," answered Mr. Lincoln 
promptly. "That is the price I've settled on." 

" Cash ? " 

" Yes ; that's what I've been expecting, though I 
might take something else for part of the pay." 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 43 

"Well, I haven't much money," continued Mr. 
Colby; "but I have what is good as money in the 
market." 

"What is it?" 

" You see I 've been specilatin' a little since I gave 
you a call in the summer. I used up my grain for 
whiskey, and I bought some, too, thinkin' that I should 
make a spec out of it ; but I hain't sold but a trifle 
on 't yet. Now, if I could pay you mostly in whiskey, 
I would strike the bargain at once ; and may be that 
over in Indiana you'll find a ready market for it." 

"I hadn't thought of taking pay in such an article," 
answered Mr. Lincoln ; "and I don't know as I could 
ever sell it. I'm going to strike right into the wilder- 
ness." 

" That may be ; but you '11 have neighbors within a 
few miles ; and over there they hain't got the knack of 
manifacturin' it, I s'pose, and this would make it easier 
to sell it." 

"It's awkward stuff to carry on such a trip, though 
I expect to move on a flat-boat." 

"Just the easiest thing in the world to carry this; 
you can carry it as well as not on a boat. You won't 
have half a load of other stuff. And it will bring you 
double there what it will here, I'm thinkin'." 
, "That's all guess-work." 

"But don't it stand to reason that whiskey would 
bring more where they can't make it, as they can here ? " 

"Yes, I admit that it may probably bring more 
there, and it ought to bring more to pay for the trouble 
of taking it there. But can't you turn it into money 
some way?" 



44 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"I don't see how I can ; I've done the best I could 
about it. The fact is, the folks in this part of Ken- 
tucky have laid in largely for whiskey. I can sell it 
in time, I have no doubt, at a stiff price, but that won't 
help me just now." 

" Of course not ; but this is unexpected, though I 'm 
determined to sell out at some rate. You look over 
the place ; it 's all in a stone's throw, and I will talk 
with my wife, and see what we can do." 

So Lincoln left Colby to examine the premises, after 
having shown him the limits of the place, and pro- 
ceeded to consult his wife. Mrs. Lincoln looked sur- 
prised, and amused over the proposition to turn the 
farm into whiskey. "A queer bargain," she said. 
" Something I never dreamed of." 

" Nor I ; but I must sell the place, and this may be 
my last chance this season." 

"That is very true, and the matter must be looked 
at carefully. It may be that the whiskey can be sold 
in Indiana more readily than we expect. I scarcely 
know what to say. You must do as you think best." 

"Well, I think it is best to sell out at some rate, and 
if I thought that this was my last chance to sell this 
fall, I should take the whiskey, and run the risk." 

"As to that, I think it likely that you won't have 
another chance this fall. It isn't often that you can 
sell a place in this part of the country." 

"I'm inclined to think, then," continued Mr. Lin- 
coln, musing, with his eyes fastened upon the earth- 
floor of their cabin, as if scarcely knowing what to do, 
"that I shall take the whiskey if I can't do any better 
with him." 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 45 

"Just as you think best," answered his wife. "You 
can judge better than I can whether it will do or 
not." 

After going to the man, and satisfying himself that 
he must take the whiskey, or fail to sell, Mr. Lincoln 
introduced the subject of the price of it, about which 
nothing had been said. 

"How much a gallon?" he inquired. "You'll of 
course sell it at a discount, seeing I take such a 
quantity." 

"Certainly; I shall sell it to you for five cents a 
gallon less than the wholesale price of a barrel ; and 
you can't ask anything better than that." 

" That 's fair, I think ; and now let me see, how much 
will it take?" The reader must remember that Mr. 
Lincoln never studied arithmetic, though he could 
solve such a problem as this, only give him time. He 
had been obliged to think and act for himself from 
boyhood, and, of course, contact with men and things 
had given him some knowledge of figures, or, at least, 
the ability to perform some problems mentally. 

Mr. Lincoln continued: "Seventy cents a gallon — 
that will be — let me see — seventy cents a gallon — 
that will — " 

" Why, one hundred gallons would come to seventy 
dollars," interrupted Colby, "and four hundred would 
come to two hundred and eighty dollars." 

"Yes, I see it — four hundred gallons, and the rest 
in money." 

"That is it; it will make just ten barrels of forty 
gallons each, and twenty dollars in money." 

" I see it. I will agree to that. Ten barrels, and 



46 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the balance in money. And when shall we close the 
bargain?" 

"Just as soon as you propose to leave." 

"That will be about the first of November. I shall 
want the whiskey and money, though, a week before 
that, so as to be all ready to start." 

" A week before that it is, then. I agree to that, 
and shall be here promptly at the time. Perhaps 
I shall bring the whiskey before that, if it comes 
right." 

"Just as well, — as soon as you please." 

So the bargain was struck, and Colby left. 

Let the reader stop here to ponder this trade. A 
homestead sold for ten barrels of whiskey and about 
twenty dollars in money ! Surely Abraham's father 
could not boast much of this world's goods ! And 
then what an article to take in exchange for a home- 
stead ! What a prospect for his son ! Many a home- 
stead is now bartered away for whiskey, or some other 
intoxicating beverage, and haggard want is all that 
remains. But not so in this case. Mr. Lincoln did 
not countenance immoderate drinking. He used whis- 
key to some extent, in common with everybody else, 
but he frowned upon intemperance. 

Such a transaction as the above was not thought 
singular at that day. Good people sold and drank 
whiskey. There was no temperance movement in 
Kentucky at that time. Indeed, it was not until about 
that time that the subject of temperance attracted 
attention in New England, and then it did not assume 
the form of total abstinence. The pledge required 
persons to abstain from immoderate drinking. It was 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 47 

not till fifteen years thereafter that the pledge of total 
abstinence was adopted. 

At the present clay the sale of a place for whiskey 
would excite surprise and amazement, and subject the 
character of the recipient of the whiskey to suspicion, 
at least. People would make remarks about it, and 
strongly suspect that the man loved whiskey more 
than real estate. But not so at that time, when the 
sale and use of it was regarded as right and proper in 
every part of the country. 

It was necessary to hasten preparations for removal, 
as Colby desired to take possession as soon as he 
could. Mr. Lincoln must take his goods to Indiana by 
flat-boat, and return for his family, which would require 
time as well as despatch. He had no flat-boat, and, 
therefore, was under the necessity of building one. 
This would require several days of hard labor. He 
was competent for such an emergency ; for he had 
constructed and run a flat-boat, on one or two trips, to 
New Orleans, in the company and employment of 
Isaac Bush. His trade and experience served him a 
good purpose now. 

Arrangements were completed for the flat-boat trip. 
Colby had arrived with the whiskey and made a set- 
tlement with Lincoln ; and the singular cargo was 
loaded. The heavy wares, like his carpenter's tools, 
pots, kettles, stools, puncheon-table, axes, etc., were 
loaded upon the boat with the whiskey ; and the many 
other things necessary. to be done before "pulling up 
stakes," as Lincoln called it, were attended to. 

Mrs. Lincoln, Sarah, and Abraham, who had watched 



48 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the progress of the boat-building with peculiar inter- 
est, and seen the boat launched and loaded, waited 
upon the bank as the homely craft was pushed out 
into deep water and floated down the river. 

We cannot stop to detail much that occurred on the 
voyage. One incident, however, deserves attention. 

He had floated down the Rolling Fork into the Ohio 
River, and proceeded quite a distance on his voyage, 
experiencing no perils of wind or storm ; and he was 
congratulating himself upon his success, when he met 
with an accident. By some mishap, the boat tilted, 
and the whiskey rolled from its position to the side, 
causing him to upset. He sprung forward to the 
other side in order to save his boat, but it was too 
late. The whiskey was heavy, and, once started from 
its position, there was no saving it or the boat. In a 
moment he was tipped into the water, with all his 
cargo. It was a good place for the whiskey, but not 
so pleasant for him. However, he clung to the boat, 
and made the best of it. 

" Hold on there !" shouted a man who was at work 
with three others on the bank of the river. " Hold 
on, and we'll come to your help." He was not more 
than three rods from the bank. 

" Quick as you can," replied Mr. Lincoln. 

"We'll be there in a jiffy," bawled one of them, 
and all ran for a boat that was tied about twenty rods 
below. 

One of the number leaped into it, and, plying the 
oar with all his might, he soon reached the craft that 
was upset, and took Mr. Lincoln on board. 

" Bad business for you," said the man. 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 49 

"Not so bad as it might be," answered Mr. Lincoln. 
" Rather lucky, I think, to meet with such an accident 
where help is close by." 

" But you've lost your cargo, though we may save 
some of it if we set about it." 

" Won't save much of it, I'm thinking. The water 
is ten or fifteen feet deep there." 

" Hardly that." 

" Pretty near it, I'll warrant." 

By this time they had reached the bank of the river, 
and the men were consulting together about righting 
Lincoln's boat and saving his cargo. Such accidents 
were not uncommon on the Ohio, and those who lived 
along the bank had lent a helping hand to many un- 
fortunate adventurers. This was the case with the 
men who came to Lincoln's rescue. They were not 
long in laying their plans, nor dilatory in executing 
them. 

In a short time they secured his boat, and suc- 
ceeded in putting it in good trim. They proceeded, 
also, to save so much of his cargo as they could. 
They called other men in the neighborhood, and, with 
such apparatus as the vicinity afforded, they raked the 
river, and recovered a part of his carpenters' tools, 
axes, a spider, and some other articles. By much per- 
severance and hard labor they succeeded in saving 
three barrels of the whiskey. All these articles were 
reloaded upon Lincoln's boat, and, with many thanks 
to the kind-hearted men for their assistance, he pro- 
ceeded on his way. 

Before starting again, however, he consulted the 
men who aided him with regard to the future of his 



50 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

way ; and he decided, in view of the information de- 
rived from them, to land at Thompson's Ferry, and 
there secure a team to convey his goods into the in- 
terior. He had previously settled in his mind, as we 
have said, what part of Indiana he should make his 
home. 

Accordingly he took his boat and goods to Thomp- 
son's Ferry, and there he found a man by the name of 
Posey, whom he hired to take him eighteen miles, into 
what is now Spencer County. This Posey owned a 
yoke of oxen, and was quite well acquainted with that 
section of country. 

" No road into that county," said he. " We shall 
have to pick our way, and use the ax some at that." 

"I am sorry for that," answered Lincoln. "Are 
there no settlers in that region ?" 

" Yes ; here and there one, and they'll be right glad 
to see you. We can put it through, if you say so." 

" Put it through, then, I say," replied Lincoln. 

The man agreed to carry his goods to his place 
of destination, and take his boat for pay. Lincoln 
would have no further use for his boat, so that it was 
a good bargain for him, and equally good for Posey, 
who wanted a boat. 

Accordingly, the team was loaded with his effects, 
and they were soon on their way. But, within a few 
miles, they were obliged to use the ax to make a 
road. 

"Just as I expected," said Posey. "I have been 
through the mill." 

" How far do you expect we shall have to cut 
through places like this ? " inquired Lincoln. 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 51 

" Far enough, I have no doubt ; this is a real wil- 
derness." 

"Then, we must go at it, if we'd see the end soon." 

"Yes; and hard work, too, it will be." And, with- 
out wasting time or breath on words, they proceeded to 
cut a road before them. 

" I've cut through miles of just such a wilderness as 
this," said Posey; "and I shouldn't be surprised if we 
had to cut a road half the way." 

" I hope not," answered Lincoln. " If I thought 
so, I should almost wish myself back in Kentucky." 

" Should, hey ? " 

" Yes ; it would be an everlasting job to cut through 
to where I am going." 

"Well, I don't suppose it will be as tough as this 
much of the way, but bad enough, no doubt." 

So with the resolution of veteran pioneers they 
toiled on, sometimes being able to pick their way for a 
long distance without chopping, and then coming to a 
stand-still in consequence of dense forests. Suffice to 
say, that they were obliged to cut a road so much of 
the way that several days were employed in going 
eighteen miles. It was a difficult, wearisome, trying 
journey, and Mr. Lincoln often said that he never 
passed through a harder experience than he did in 
going from Thompson's Ferry to Spencer County, 
Indiana. 

Some two or three miles south of their place of des- 
tination they passed the cabin of a hospitable settler, 
who gave them a hearty welcome, and such refresh- 
ments as his humble abode contained. He was well 
acquainted with all that region, too, and suggested to 



52 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Mr. Lincoln the spot upon which he decided to erect 
his cabin, and also volunteered to accompany them 
thither. 

The settlers at that day delighted to see others 
coming to their vicinity to dwell, thus increasing their 
neighbors, and removing somewhat the loneliness of 
pioneer life. They were ever ready to lend a helping- 
hand to new-comers, and to share with them the scanty 
blessings that Providence allowed them. 

Mr. Lincoln was glad to reach the end of his jour- 
ney ; and he found the spot suggested by his new 
friend in the cabin, whose name was Wood, a very in- 
viting one. 

" Better than I expected," said Lincoln. " I wouldn't 
ask for a better place than this." 

" I've had my eye on it some time," replied Wood. 

" Chance for more settlers, though," continued Lin- 
coln. " One cabin in eighteen miles ain't very thick." 

" That's so," added Posey. " There's elbow-room 
for a few more families, and it won't be long before 
they'll be here." 

" But you've neighbors nearer than that," said Wood. 
" There's one family not more than two miles east of 
here." 

"Then I shall have two neighbors," said Lincoln. 

"And there are two other families within six or 
eight miles, — one of them is north, and the other 
west," continued Wood. "The fact is, people are 
flockin' into this free State fast." 

We must not dwell. Posey returned with his team 
to Thompson's Ferry, and Mr. Lincoln, having de- 
posited his goods, and secured Mr. Wood's promise to 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 53 

look after them, directed his steps on foot back to his 
family. It was about one hundred miles from his old 
home in Kentucky to his new one in Indiana. This 
was the distance, in a direct line. It was twenty-five 
miles further, the way Mr. Lincoln came. It was a 
part of his plan to return on foot. A direct line, 
about southeast, would bring him to Hardin County, 
— a three days' journey. 

His family gave him a cordial welcome, and Abra- 
ham was somewhat taken with the story of his father's 
adventure, particularly the part relating to his plunge 
into the Ohio River. 

Hasty preparations were made to remove the family, 
and such things as he did not take with him on the 
boat. He took no bedding or apparel with him on 
the boat. These were left to go with the family, on 
horseback. Two horses were provided, and on these 
were packed the aforesaid articles, — Mrs. Lincoln, her 
daughter, and Abraham sometimes riding and some- 
times walking. 

They were seven days in performing the journey, 
camping out nights, with no other shelter than the 
starry skies over them, and no other bed than blankets 
spread upon the ground. 

It was a novel experience even to them, nor was 
it without its perils. Yet they had no fears. In that 
country, at that day, neither men nor women allowed 
themselves to cower in the presence of dangers. 

Females were not the timid class that they are now. 
They were distinguished for heroism that was truly 
wonderful. Inured as they were to hardships and 
perils, they learned to look dangers steadily in the 



54 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

face, and to consider great privations as incidental to 
pioneer life. Experiences that would now destroy the 
happiness of most of the sex then served to develop 
the courage and other intrepid virtues that qualified 
them for the mission God designed they should fulfil. 

Many facts are found in history illustrating the 
heroism of Western females in the early settlement 
of that part of our country. Soon after Abraham's 
grandfather removed to Kentucky, an Indian entered 
the cabin of a Mr. Daviess, armed with gun and toma- 
hawk, for the purpose of plundering it, and capturing 
the family. Mrs. Daviess was alone with her children. 
With remarkable presence of mind she invited the 
Indian to drink, at the same time setting a bottle of 
whiskey on the table. The Indian set down his gun 
to pour out a dram, and at once Mrs. Daviess seized 
it, and, aiming it at his head, threatened to blow 
his brains out if he did not surrender. The Indian 
dropped the bottle, sat down upon a stool, and promised 
to do no harm if she would not fire. In that position 
she kept him until her husband arrived. 

In another instance, about the same time, the house 
of a Mr. Merrill was attacked in the night by several 
Indians, and Mr. Merrill was seriously wounded as he 
went to the door. The savages attempted to enter the 
house, when Mrs. Merrill and her daughter shut the 
door against them, and held it. Then the Indians 
hewed away a part of the door, so that one of them 
could get in at a time. But Mrs. Merrill, though her 
husband lay groaning and weltering in his blood, and 
her children were screaming with fright, seized an ax, 
when the first one had got partly into the room, and 



THE OLD HOME SOLD. 55 

dealt upon him a mortal blow. Then she drew his 
body in and waited for the approach of another. The 
Indians, supposing that their comrade had forced an 
entrance, were exultant, and proceeded to follow him. 
Nor did they discover their mistake until she had des- 
patched four of them in this way. Then two of them 
attempted to descend the chimney, whereupon she 
ordered her children to empty the contents of a bed 
upon the fire ; and the fire and smoke soon brought 
down two Indians, half suffocated, into the room. Mr. 
Merrill, by a desperate exertion, rose up, and speedily 
finished these two with a billet of wood. At the same 
time his wife dealt so heavy a blow upon the only re- 
maining Indian at the door, that he was glad to retire. 

Volumes might be filled with stories that show the 
heroism of Western women at that day. We have 
cited these two examples simply to exhibit their forti- 
tude. Mrs. Lincoln was a resolute, fearless woman, 
like her pioneer sisters, and hence was coor and self- 
possessed amidst all exposures and dangers. 

We said they were seven days on the journey. Two 
miles from their destination they came to the cabin of 
their nearest neighbor, Mr. Neale, who treated them 
with great kindness, and promised to assist them on 
the following day in putting up a dwelling. It was a 
pleasant proffer of assistance, and it served to make 
them happier as they lay down in their blankets on the 
first night of their residence in Spencer County, Indiana. 

We have been thus particular, in this part of the 
narrative, because this experience had much to do with 
the development of that courage, energy, decision, 
and perseverance for which Abraham was thereafter 
distinguished. 



W\j4* 





CHAPTER IV. 

A NEW HOME MADE." 

T was in the new home in Indiana that 
Abraham began to be a genuine pioneer 
boy. The ax was the symbol of pioneer 
life; and here he began to swing one in 
dead earnest. From the time he was eight years old 
until he had past his majority, he was accustomed to 
the almost daily use of the ax. His physical strength 
developed with wonderful rapidity, so that he became 
one of the most efficient wood-choppers in that region. 
After he became President, and the " War of the 
Rebellion " was on his hands, he visited the hospi- 
tals at City Point, where three thousand sick and 
wounded soldiers were sheltered. He insisted upon 
shaking hands with every one of them ; and, after per- 
forming the feat, and friends were expressing their 
fears that his arm would be lamed by so much hand- 
shaking, he remarked, — "The hardships of my early 
life gave me strong muscles." And, stepping out of 
the open door, he took up a very large, heavy ax 
which lay there by a log of wood, and chopped vigor- 
ously for a few moments, sending the chips flying in 
all directions ; and, then pausing, he extended his right 
arm to its full length, holding the ax out horizon- 



A NEW HOME MADE. $7 

tally, without its even quivering as he held it. Strong 
men who looked on — men accustomed to manual labor 
— could not hold the same ax in that position for a 
moment. When the President left, a hospital steward 
gathered up the chips, and laid them aside carefully, 
" because they were the chips that Father Abraham 
chopped." 

It was necessary for the Lincoln family to erect a 
habitation as soon as possible, and "a half-faced camp" 
could be more easily and quickly built than a cabin, 
because it could be constructed of "poles" instead of 
logs. For this reason, Mr. Lincoln decided to erect 
the "camp" for a temporary abode, and the next year 
build a substantial log-cabin. He could cut the logs 
and prepare slabs during the winter, so that the labor 
of erecting a cabin would not be great after the plant- 
ing of the next spring was done. 

A "half -faced camp" was "a cabin enclosed on three 
sides and open on the fourth," a very poor habitation 
for the cold winters of Indiana. But pioneers accepted 
almost any device for a shelter, and made the best of 
cold, hunger, and hardship. 

Abraham began pioneer life by assisting his father 
in erecting the "camp." Cutting "poles" was an 
easy method of initiating him into the hard work of 
chopping wood. It was not, however, until the follow- 
ing summer when the more substantial cabin was 
erected, that Abraham engaged in the enterprise with 
all his heart. A severe winter and unusual exposure 
caused him to appreciate a better habitation. 

After "clearing some land, and planting corn and 
vegetables," in the spring of 1817, and the summer 



58 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

work was well under way, Mr. Lincoln proceeded to 
erect his log-cabin. His nearest neighbor rendered 
him essential aid, and Abraham proved himself very 
efficient for a boy of eight years. One who often 
found shelter under the hospitable roof of this cabin 
has furnished the following description of it : — 

" It was sixteen by eighteen feet in size, without a 
floor, the unhewn logs put together at the corners by 
the usual method of notching them, and the cracks 
between them stopped with clay. It had a shed-roof, 
covered with slabs or clapboards split from logs. It 
contained but one room, with a loft, slabs being laid on 
the logs overhead, so as to make a chamber, to which 
access was had by pins driven into the logs in one 
corner. It had one door and one window. The latter, 
however, was so ingeniously constructed, that it de- 
serves particular attention. Mr. Lincoln made a sash 
of the size of four six-by-eight squares of glass ; and, in 
place of glass, which could not be obtained in that 
region, he took the skin that covers the fat portion of 
a hog, called the leaves, and drew it over the sash 
tight. This furnished a very good substitute for glass ; 
and the contrivance reflected much credit upon the in- 
ventive genius of the builder. 

The cabin was furnished by Mr. Lincoln and 
Abraham, and we will give some account of the 
way of doing it. 

"Bring me the auger, Abe," said his father, "and 
that measure, too; we must have a bedstead now." 

"I can bore the holes," answered Abraham, at the 
same time bringing the auger and measure. 

"No, you can't. It's tough work to bore two-inch 



A NEW HOME MADE. 59 

holes into such logs as these. But you can go and 
find me a stick for a post, and two others to lay on it." 

"That all?" 

"Yes, that's all. I'll just make it in that corner, 
and then I shall have but two holes to bore, antl one 
post to set up. It's not more than an hour's work." 

By making the bedstead in the corner, the work was 
but small. He measured off eight feet on one side, 
and bored one hole, then four and a half feet on the 
end, and bored another hole. Then, setting up the post 
in its place, two sticks from each auger hole would meet 
on the post, thus making the framework of the bed. 
This was soon done. 

" Now for the bed-cord, Abe," said his father, jocosely. 
"We must have something to lay the bed on." 

"I thought you laid on slabs," answered Abraham, 
not exactly comprehending the drift of his father's, 
remark. 

" We haven't any other bed-cord, so pass me some of 
those yonder." The slabs used to lay over the bed- 
frame were like those on the roof. 

"How many shall I bring?" and he began to pass 
the slabs. 

"About six, I think, will do it." 

They were soon brought, and the bed was complete. 

" Now, a sackful of straw on that will make a fine 
bed." Dry leaves, hay and husks were sometimes used 
for this purpose. Few had feathers in that region. 

"You must keep on with your cabinet-making," said 
Mrs. Lincoln. "We need a table as much as a bed." 

" Of course. That comes next," replied her husband 
" The legs for it are all ready." 



6o PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



" Where are they ? " inquired Abraham. 

" Out there," pointing to a small pile of limbs, sticks, 
and slabs. Abraham went after them, while his father 
sawed off a puncheon of the required length for the 
table. A puncheon was made by splitting a log eigh- 
teen inches, more or less, in diameter, the flat side laid 
uppermost. Puncheons were used in this way to make 
tables, stools, and floors. 

By the time Abraham had brought the sticks for the 
legs of the table, his father had the table part all ready, 
and was proceeding to bore the holes for the legs. 

" Now you may bring some more of those sticks in 
the pile, — the shortest of them I shall want next." 

"What for?" 

" Oh, we must have some chairs now ; we've sat on 
the ground long enough. I want the sticks for legs." 
• " Enough for one stool each now will do. We'll make 
some extra ones when we get over our hurry. Four 
times three are twelve ; I shall want twelve." 

"Must they be just alike ? " 

"No; you can't find two alike, hardly. If they are 
too long, I can saw them the right length." 

All this time the work of making the table went on. 
As Abraham had so large a number of stool-legs to 
select and bring from the pile, the table was nearly 
completed when his part of the work was done. 

"A scrumptious table, I'm thinking," said Mr. Lin- 
coln, as he surveyed it when it was fairly on its legs. 
"Pioneer cabinet-work ain't handsome, but it's dura- 
ble." 

"And useful, too," said his wife. "Two of them 
wouldn't come amiss." 



A NEW HOME MADE. 6 1 

" No ; and when I get time we'll have another. 
Perhaps Abe can make you one some time. Can't 
you make a table, Abe ? " 

" I can try it." 

" Well, you ought to succeed, now you have seen me 
do it. You can try your hand at it some day. But 
now for the stools." 

A good slab was selected, of which four stools could 
be made ; and before night the house was furnished at 
small expense. A bed, table, and stools constituted 
the furniture of this pioneer home, in which Abraham 
spent twelve years of his eventful life. 

Abraham occupied the loft above, ascending to his 
lodgings by the ladder. It was his parlor-chamber, 
where he slept soundly at night on the loose floor, 
with no other bedding than blankets. Here, year 
after year, he reposed nightly with as much content 
and bliss as we usually find in the mansions of the 
rich. He had never known better fare than this ; and 
perhaps, at that age, he did not expect a larger share 
of worldly goods. 

By this time the loss of the family by the accident 
on the Ohio River was nearly made good, except one 
or two iron kettles, and a little very poor crockery. 
The puncheon table and stools were replaced by better 
ones. Through the winter and spring, the family had 
got along as they could, anticipating an improved con- 
dition in the autumn. 

The pioneer families of that day needed the means 
of converting their corn into meal. Meal was a staple 
article of food, without which they could scarcely sur- 
vive, but there were few grist mills in all the region 



62 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

for many miles around. The nearest was Thompson's 
Ferry, where Lincoln landed on his way to Indiana. 
They were hand-mills, and could grind but little faster 
than corn could be pounded into meal with mortar 
and pestle. 

" I'll have a mill of my own," remarked Mr. Lincoln. 

" How ? " inquired Abraham. 

" You'll see when it is done. This going eighteen 
miles to mill don't pay : we must have one right here." 

" And it won't take you longer to make one than it 
would to go to the ferry once and back," said Mrs. 
Lincoln. 

*' It's an all-day job to go there, and a pretty long 
day at that." She knew what kind of a mill he re- 
ferred to, for she had seen them. 

"We'll have one before to-morrow night," added 
Mr. Lincoln, with a shrug of the shoulder. 

"How will you make it?" inquired Abraham, who 
was growing interested. 

" You'll see when it's done : I shall need some of 
your help, and if you do first rate, you may try the rifle 
some day." The boy had been promised before that 
he should learn to shoot. 

" I like that," said the lad. 

" And so shall I, if you make a marksman. You 
can be a great help to us by killing game to cook. 
When you get so that you can pop over a turkey or a 
deer, I sha'n't need to hunt any." 

" Will you let me do it ? " 

" Yes, and be glad to have you. The woods are full 
of game, and you shall have a chance to make a good 
shot" 



A NEW HOME MADE. 63 

Abraham was delighted with the prospect of mak- 
ing a gunner, and he went to his hard bed that night 
with glowing thoughts of the future. The morrow's 
sun found him up and ready to assist his father in 
making a grist-mill. 

"The first thing is a log," said his father; and he 
proceeded to look for a tree of suitable dimensions ; 
nor was he long in finding one. 

" When I get it ready, I shall want you to make a 
fire on't, Abe," he continued. 

" What ! burn it up ? " screamed the boy, not under- 
standing what his father meant. 

" Ha! not quite so bad as that. It wouldn't be worth 
much for a mill if 'twas burnt up." 

" Didn't you say make a fire on it !" 

" Yes, on the top of it ; we must burn a hole in it a 
foot deep, to put corn in ; so get your fire ready." 

It was not long before the tree was prostrate, and 
a portion of the trunk cut off about four feet long. 
Setting it upon one end, Mr. Lincoln continued, 
" Here, Abe, that's what I mean by making a fire 
on't. You must make a fire right on the top of it, 
and burn a hole in it well nigh a foot deep. I'll help 
you." 

The fire was soon kindled, and Abraham's curiosity 
was at the highest pitch. What was coming next was 
more than he could tell, — and no wonder. 

" Now, bring some water ; we must keep it wet." 

" And put out the fire ? " said Abraham, inquiringly. 

" No, no ; we must keep the outside of it wet, so 
that the whole of it won't burn. We don't want to 
burn the outside — only a hole in the centre." 



64 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Abraham saw through it now, and he hastened to 
get the water. The fire was kept burning while Mr. 
Lincoln looked up a spring-pole, to one end of which 
he attached a pestle. 

"What is that for?" asked Abraham. 

" You'll see when I get it into working order," re- 
plied his father. " Keep the fire a-going till it's burnt 
deep enough." 

" It'll never burn as deep as you say." 

"Yes, it will, only keep doing. That's the way 
pioneers have to make grist mills." 

" It'll take more than one day to burn it anyhow, at 
this rate." 

" No, it won't. It will burn faster when it gets a 
little deeper. We'll have it done before night. You 
must have patience and keep at it." 

And they continued at the work. Mr. Lincoln pre- 
pared the spring-pole somewhat like an old-fashioned 
well-sweep ; and it was ready for use before the hole 
was burned deep enough in the log. Then, with his 
additional help, the log was ready before night, and 
the coal was thoroughly cleaned out of the hole, and 
the pestle on the pole adapted thereto. 

This was all the mill that he proposed to have. It 
was the kind used by many settlers at that day. It 
was a mortar and pestle on a large scale, and, on the 
whole, was much better than to go twenty miles to a 
real mill that could grind but little faster. About 
two quarts of corn could be put into the hole in the 
log at once, and a few strokes from the pestle on the 
spring-pole would reduce it to meal. In this way the 
family could be provided with meal at short notice. 



A NEW HOME MADE. 65 

The apparatus, too, corresponded very well with all the 
surroundings. For a Dutch oven and spider consti- 
tuted the culinary furniture of the cabin. All their 
other articles of iron-ware were at the bottom of the 
Ohio River. The spider was used for griddle, stew- 
pan, gridiron, kettle, and sundry other things, in addi- 
tion to its legitimate purpose ; proving that man's real 
wants are few in number. It is very convenient to 
be provided with all the modern improvements in 
this line ; but the experience of the Lincoln family 
shows that happiness and life can be promoted with- 
out them. 

This mill served the family an excellent purpose for 
several years. It was so simple that it needed no re- 
pairs, and it was not dependent either on rain or sun- 
shine for the power to go. Any of the family could 
go to mill here. Abraham could carry a grist on his 
arm and back, and play the part of miller at the same 
time. 

The Lincoln family was not fairly settled in Indiana 
until they moved into their new log-cabin in the autumn 
of 1 817. By that time, Abraham had become a 
thorough pioneer boy. He had made considerable 
improvement, too, in "reading and writing." The 
impulse that Hazel gave him in Kentucky was not lost 
in Indiana. The three books of the family library 
continued to supply his intellectual wants. 

During the long winter evenings of that first winter 
in Indiana, he read by the light of the fire ; for they 
could not afford the luxury of any other light in their 
cabin. This was true, very generally, of the pioneer 
families : they had no more than was absolutely neces- 



66 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

sary to supply their wants. They could exist without 
lamp-oil or candles, and so most of them did without 
either. They could afford the largest fire possible, 
since wood was so plenty that they studied to get rid 
of it. Hence the light of the fire was almost equal to 
a good chandelier. Large logs and branches of wood 
were piled together in the fireplace, and its mammoth 
blaze lighted up every nook and corner of the dwelling. 
Hence lamps were scarcely needed. 

He practised penmanship with a charred stick on the 
bark of trees and on slabs. In the winter, he wrote 
his name in the snow with a stick ; and, in the summer, 
he wrote it on the ground in the garden. In this way 
he increased his ability to write, along with his ability 
to read. Still, we can scarcely conceive of a more 
unpromising situation for a bright boy. 

The exact location of Mr. Lincoln's cabin was 
between the forks of Big Pigeon and Little Pigeon 
Creeks, one mile and a half from what is now the 
village of Gentryville. His cabin was surrounded with 
a dense forest of oaks, walnuts, sugar-maples, and other 
varieties of trees found in the woods of North America. 
The trees were of the largest growth, affording a refuge 
and shelter for birds and beasts, which abounded here. 
Deer and wild turkeys furnished abundant food for the 
settlers, whose experience with the rifle was their 
assurance of enough to eat. Lincoln was expert with 
the rifle, and in the forests of Indiana game met him 
on every hand. There was a small open space, or 
prairie, within a short distance from his cabin, where 
the deer resorted ; and here he made many a good shot 
to supply his larder with venison. 



A NEW HOME MADE. 67 

The situation of his cabin was all that Mr. Lincoln 
could desire. There was one drawback, however, — 
there was no spring of water within a mile. One of 
the most fatiguing "chores" that Abraham and his 
sister did, in those days of hardship, was to bring water 
from the spring, one mile away. This need was sub- 
sequently supplied in some way. Dennis Hanks says 
that Mr. Lincoln "riddled his land like a honeycomb" 
in search of water ; and, perhaps, he found it through 
this "riddling" process. There is a story that he em- 
ployed a Yankee with a divining-rod, who directed him 
to excellent water for five dollars ; but it is only a 
story. 

How he obtained possession of this farm is explained 
by Dennis Hanks, who says, " He settled on a piece of 
government land, — eighty acres. The land he after- 
wards bought under the Two-Dollar Act ; was to 
pay for it in instalments ; one-half he paid, the other 
half he never paid, and finally lost the whole of the 
land." 

We have said that Mr. Lincoln settled in Spencer 
County. The location of his cabin was in Perry County ; 
but, within a few years, through increasing immigration 
and rapid changes and improvements, he found himself 
in Spencer County, with the court-house at Rockport 
and the village of Gentryville springing up about a 
mile and a half distant. Nine years after he settled in 
Indiana, a post-office was established at Gentryville. 

David Turnham, who was a boy with Abraham in 
Spencer County, furnishes an interesting account of 
that country when he first removed thither, as follows : 

"When my father came here in the spring of 1819, 



68 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he settled in. Spencer County, within one mile of 
Thomas Lincoln, then a widower. The chance for 
schooling was poor ; but, such as it was, Abraham and 
myself attended the same schools. 

" We first had to go seven miles to mill ; and then it 
was a hand-mill that would grind from ten to fifteen 
bushels of corn in a day. There was but little wheat 
grown at that time ; and, when we did have wheat, we 
had to grind it on the mill described, and use it without 
bolting, as there were no bolts in the country. In the 
course of two or three years, a man by the name of 
Huffman built a mill on Anderson River, about twelve 
miles distant. Abe and I had to do the milling on 
horseback, frequently going twice to get one grist. 
Then they began building horse-mills of a little better 
quality than the hand-mills. 

" The country was very rough, especially in the low- 
lands, so thick with bush that a man could scarcely 
get through on foot. These places were called Roughs. 
The country abounded in game, such as bears, deer, 
turkeys, and the smaller game. 

" At that time there were a great many deer-licks ; 
and Abe and myself would go to these licks sometimes, 
and watch of nights to kill deer, though Abe was not 
so fond of a gun as I was. There were ten or twelve of 
these licks in a small prairie on the creek, lying between 
Mr. Lincoln's and Mr. Wood's. 

" The people in the first settling of this country were 
very sociable, kind, and accommodating; but there 
was more drunkenness and stealing on a small scale, 
more immorality, less religion, less well-placed con- 
fidence." 



A NEW HOME MADE. 69 

Mr. Turnham's allusion to the prevalence of drunken- 
ness, at that day, renders it necessary to state that the 
prevalence of this evil was the source of much anxiety 
to Mrs. Lincoln. The danger to her boy was immi- 
nent ; and many a word of warning and counsel dropped 
from her lips into his young ears. When Abraham 
began his public career, and he fearlessly and firmly 
avowed his total abstinence principles, he said that he 
owed much to one counsel of his mother; viz., "Men 
become drunkards because they begin to drink ; if you 
never begin to drink, you will never become a drunkard." 

The sagacity and wisdom of the mother in this 
striking remark will not appear to the reader until it 
is remembered that, at that day, there was not a total 
abstinence society or pledge in the world. Mrs. Lin- 
coln had never heard of a temperance movement ; for, 
indeed, there had been none, except on the smallest 
scale, in a few localities. Yet, she proposed the only 
safeguard to her boy, — one that proved of inestimable 
value to him, as he publicly and privately acknowledged 
many years thereafter. 

We have given in detail the time, place, and circum- 
stances of Abraham's discipline in early life, that the 
reader may appreciate the force of character which 
lifted the incubus of poverty and obscurity, and made 
him famous in the world. 




CHAPTER V. 

AFTER GAME. 

j]T was in the spring of 1817, when Thomas 
Lincoln was preparing to put his first seed 
into the soil of Indiana, that Abraham made 
his first shot at game. His parents were 
discussing the old subject — their loss on the Ohio 
River; when Mrs. Lincoln remarked, — 

" I'm thoroughly convinced that our loss was all for 
the best. I think I can see it." 

"Glad if you can," replied Mr. Lincoln, "you're 
pretty good for seeing what nobody else can ; " and he 
uttered this sentence rather thoughtlessly, as his mind 
was really absorbed in another subject. 

" I don't know about that ; but what in the world 
would you have done with all the whiskey, if we had 
not lost any of it in the river ? Never could sell it all 
here, — and what a job it would have been to get it 
here from the Ferry ! " 

" Well, if I didn't sell it, we should be about as well 
off as we are now." 

" Except the cost of getting the barrels here." 

"That wouldn't be much." 

" Then there's the danger of the evil it might do. 
It's dangerous stuff any way, as the case of many 
men shows." 



AFTER GAME. J\ 



" I know that ; but I don't fear for myself." 

" Neither do I fear for you ; but I was thinking of 
Abe. You know hdw it is with boys in these times, 
and how much misery whiskey makes in a great many 
families. And I can't help thinking that it is all for 
the best that most of it is in the river." 

* " I can't say but what it is ; I hope it is. It makes 
mischief enough, if that's all ; and if I dreamed it 
would make any in my family, I should wish that all 
of it was at the bottom of the river." 

" You may as well be glad now ; for we have less to 
fear ; and perhaps the Lord thought it was best to put 
so much of it where it could injure no one." 

" So be it, then-; but I must go to my work. This 
weather is too fine to be lost in doing nothing. The 
stuff is all sold now, so that there is no fear on that 
score." He sold a barrel to Posey, the teamster, who 
hauled his goods from the Ferry, and the remainder 
he disposed of in the course of the winter. 

Mr. Lincoln arose and went out to his work, and 
within ten minutes afterwards Abraham came rushing 
into the cabin in a state of great excitement. 

" Mother," he exclaimed, " there's a flock of turkeys 
right out here that I can shoot. See there," and he 
directed her to look through a crack in the cabin where 
the clay had fallen off. " Let me shoot, mother." 

"Sure enough, Abe, there is a flock," responded his 
mother, as she caught sight of the turkeys ; "a fine 
shot it is," and she hastened for the rifle that was 
always kept loaded. 

" Be quick, mother, I'll fire right through the hole," 
continued Abe, under increasing excitement. 



72 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

His mother was not long in bringing the rifle, and 
adjusting it through the loop-hole between the logs, 
when, with a few quick words of caution, she allowed 
him to fire. 

"Bang!" went the rifle, and resounded through the 
forest with unusual volume, as Abraham thought in 
his intense earnestness. Both mother and son ran out 
to discover the result of the shot, and by the time they 
reached the spot, the smoke had cleared away, and 
there lay one of the flock dead. 

" Killed one," shouted Abraham, as he lifted an extra 
large turkey from the ground. 

"So you have," answered his mother, under almost 
as much excitement as her son. 

"A monster!" continued the lad, surveying the 
lusty fellow with boyish pride. "Did you ever see 
such a big one ? " 

" It is a very large one," replied his mother; "that 
was a good shot, Abe." 

By this time Mr. Lincoln had reached the spot. 
Hearing the report of the gun, he left his work, and 
hurried back to learn the cause. 

" What's the firing for ? " he asked hurriedly. 

" I've killed a turkey," answered Abraham, exhibit- 
ing in triumph the dead bird. 

" Did you do that, Abe ? " 

" Nobody else did it," was the boy's rather char- 
acteristic reply. 

" A capital shot, Abe ; you'll make a good one with 
the rifle if you keep on," his father added, intending to 
praise the boy. The fact was it was not a capital shot 
at all : he accidentally killed the turkey. He did not 



AFTER GAME. 73 



understand the use of a gun well enough to make a 
"capital shot." The turkey happened to sit in the 
way of the bullet, and was killed in consequence — 
that was all there was of it. 

We have already said that pioneer families were 
dependent upon game for food. On this account 
fathers and sons became good marksmen, and even 
females were often expert with the rifle. Mrs. Lincoln 
could load and fire off a gun if necessary. In common 
with her sex, she was accustomed to such things, and 
adapted herself to circumstances. 

Marvellous stories are told about the skill of the 
pioneers in the use of the rifle, and good authority 
substantiates their truthfulness. One writer says : 
" Several individuals who conceive themselves adepts 
in the management of the rifle, are often seen to meet 
for the purpose of displaying their skill ; and they put 
up a target, in the centre of which a common-sized 
nail is hammered for about two-thirds its length. The 
marksmen make choice of what they consider a proper 
distance, and which may be forty paces. Each man 
clears the interior of his tube, places a ball in the 
palm of his hand, and pours as much powder from his 
horn as will cover it. This quantity is supposed to be 
sufficient for any distance short of a hundred yards. 
A shot that comes very close to the nail is considered 
that of an indifferent marksman : the bending of the 
nail is of course somewhat better ; but nothing less 
than hitting it right on the head is satisfactory. One 
out of three shots generally hits the nail ; and should 
the shooters amount to half a dozen, two nails are fre- 
quently needed before each can have a shot." 



74 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The same writer continues : " The snuffing of a 
candle with a ball I first had an opportunity of seeing 
near the banks of Green River, not far from a large 
pigeon-roost, to which I had previously made a visit. 
I had heard many reports of guns during the early part 
of a dark night, and knowing them to be those of rifles, 
I went forward toward the spot to ascertain the cause. 
On reaching the place, I was welcomed by a dozen 
tall, stout men, who told me they were exercising for 
the purpose of enabling them to shoot under night, at 
the reflected light from the eyes of a deer or wolf by 
torchlight. A fire was blazing near, the smoke of 
which rose curling among the thick foliage of the 
trees. At a distance which rendered it scarcely dis- 
tinguishable, stood a burning candle, but which, in 
reality, was only fifty yards from the spot on which 
we all stood. One man was within a few yards of it 
to watch the effects of the shots, as well as to light 
the candle, should it chance to go out, or to replace it, 
should the shot cut it across. Each marksman shot 
in his turn. Some never hit either the snuff or the 
candle, and were congratulated with a loud laugh, 
while others actually snuffed the candle without 
putting it out, and were recompensed for their dex- 
terity by numerous hurrahs. One of them, who was 
particularly expert, was very fortunate, and snuffed the 
candle three times out of seven, while all the other shots 
either put out the candle or cut it immediately under 
the light." 

Such was the skill of riflemen at that day. Hence 
it was of considerable importance that boys should 
learn how to fire accurately. Not as a pastime 



AFTER GAME. 7S 



was it valued, but as a means of gaining subsistence. 
In addition to procuring game for the table, furs were 
in great demand, and there were many animals valu- 
able on this account. It was necessary, therefore, 
that Abraham should learn the art. 

The summer of 1817 passed away, and early in the 
autumn the loneliness of their wilderness-life was 
somewhat relieved by the coming of old friends. 
Thomas and Betsy Sparrow, who reared Nancy Hanks 
(Mrs. Lincoln), came to settle by their side. Mr. Lin- 
coln had just removed into his nezv cabin, so the 
Sparrows at once began housekeeping in the half-face 
camp. Dennis Hanks, also, had a home with the 
Sparrows, and Betsy was his aunt ; so Dennis re- 
moved to Indiana with them. 

It was a happy day for the Lincolns when the 
Sparrows became their neighbors. " Sparrows on 
the house-top," had often regaled them with song, but 
the human Sparrows from Kentucky were to them 
more than song — they were society. To Abraham 
especially was their coming a real godsend ; for now 
he had an intimate and constant companion in his jolly 
cousin, Dennis Hanks. Such an acquisition to a boy 
in the woods was more of a boon than language can 
describe. 




CHAPTER VI. 

DARKER DAYS. 

BRAHAM continued to peruse the three 
books of the family library, — the Bible, 
Catechism, and Spelling-Book. There was 
no prospect that another book of any sort 
would be added to the number. The thirst for knowl- 
edge begotten in his soul already was forced to find 
its aliment in this narrow compass. The result was, 
that he knew the Spelling-Book and Catechism by 
heart ; and he could repeat much of the Bible. His 
mind was hungry for knowledge ; but could not find 
enough to eat. It was daily put upon " short allow- 
ance." 

In these circumstances he longed for other books. 
He began to tire of the Bible. " I don't want to read 
the Bible all the time," he often remarked ; " I wish I 
could have some other book to read." He did not 
know what other books were in existence. His parents 
were not wiser than he in that respect. But his mind 
was ravenous, and would have accepted almost any 
sort of a literary dish, good, bad, or indifferent. It 
pleaded for books. 

While he was in this famishing intellectual state, a 
fearful disease broke out among the settlers, called 



DARKER DAYS. 77 



"the milk disease." Cows that gave the milk, and the 
people who drank it, became sick, suffered, and died. 
The first case was fifteen or twenty miles away, but 
near enough to create alarm in the Lincoln cabin. It 
was not long, however, before the dreaded visitor came 
to their door. Mr. and Mrs. Sparrow were stricken 
down by the disease nearly at the same time. It was 
in the summer of 18 18. Consternation now turned 
the attention of Abraham from books to the perils of 
the hour. His longing for other books was exchanged 
for fear of sudden death. 

The Sparrows were very sick, and no doctor within 
thirty or forty miles. Mr. Lincoln and his wife, to- 
gether with other settlers, rendered all the assistance 
in their power to the ill-fated couple. Week after week 
their sufferings were prolonged, sometimes worse, some- 
times better, hope rising or waning accordingly. 

"We must remove them into our cabin," said Mrs. 
Lincoln to her husband ; " they must have better 
quarters and care." Mr. and Mrs. Sparrow were 
as father and mother to Mrs. Lincoln, and her love 
for them was like that of a daughter. 

" Perhaps it will be best ; they can't live long any- 
where in my opinion," Mr. Lincoln replied. 

" I can look after them much better here," con- 
tinued Mrs. Lincoln ; " and whether they live or die, 
we shall have the satisfaction of knowing that we did 
everything in our power for them." 

The sick couple were removed into the Lincoln 
cabin in September, and no one was more rejoiced over 
the event than Dennis Hanks, to whom, also, the Spar- 
rows were as father and mother. Dennis emphasized 



78 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

his joy over the removal by saying he was glad "to 
get out of the mean little half -face campy 

The removal brought no relief to the sinking pa- 
tients. In a few days both of them died, spreading 
gloom over the neighborhood, and creating the sad- 
dest experience Abraham and Dennis ever knew. 

A spot was selected for the burial-place of the dead, 
about one half mile from the cabin, on a beautiful knoll 
that nestled under the shadow of mammoth trees. Mr. 
Lincoln was the only settler in the vicinity capable of 
making a coffin ; and he set about the sorrowful work, 
making them out of "green lumber, cut with a whip- 
saw." They were rough and heavy, like everything 
else connected with pioneer life ; but answered their 
purpose well. Without funeral ceremonies, the 
neighbors gathered from far and near, and tearfully 
committed their deceased friends to the dust. 

A few days only elapsed after the burial, before 
Mrs. Lincoln was attacked, much more violently than 
the Sparrows, with the same dreaded disease. It was 
about three o'clock in the morning. Abraham was 
awakened out of a sound sleep, and hurried away for 
the nearest neighbor, Mrs. Woods, and, at the same 
time, Dennis, who became a permanent member of 
Lincoln's family after the death of the Sparrows, and 
was Abraham's bed-fellow in the loft, made his ap- 
pearance, to render any assistance within his power. 
In the absence of physicians, a strong bond of sym- 
pathy united pioneer families, and the feminine mem- 
bers were always ready to tender their best nursing 
abilities to the sick. Nor were they altogether unsuc- 
cessful in their treatment. Some of them exhibited 



DARKER DAYS. 79 

much skill in managing diseases, having been thrown 
upon their own resources for a long period, reflect- 
ing and studying for themselves. As physicians could 
not be had, they were compelled to do the best thing 
possible for themselves. 

Mrs. Woods was not long in coming to her relief, 
and before the close of that day several other neighbors, 
who were notified of Mrs. Lincoln's sickness, came to 
proffer assistance. The tidings of her sudden attack 
spread so rapidly, that, within two or three days, all 
the pioneer families in the vicinity heard of it, and their 
proffers of assistance were prompt and tender. But the 
patient steadily grew worse, and soon became satisfied 
that her sickness would prove fatal. Some persons 
attacked with that singular disease lingered for weeks, 
as the Sparrows did ; but Mrs. Lincoln's sickness was 
violent and brief. On the fifth day of October, she 
expired, leaving the Lincoln cabin more desolate than 
ever. Coming so speedily after the Sparrows passed 
away, death had additional terrors to the living. Den- 
nis Hanks remembers the woe-begone appearance of 
Abraham from the time his mother's life was despaired 
of until weeks after she was laid in her grave. He was 
nine years old, thoughtful and sensible, not much in- 
clined to talk about the event, but ever looking as if 
a pall were drawn over his heart. The reader can 
imagine, perhaps, what no language can convey, the 
loss of a good mother to a bright, obedient, and trusting 
boy, hid away in the woods, where a mother's presence 
and love must be doubly precious. The bitter ex- 
perience was well suited to make the loneliness of 
pioneer life vastly more lonely, and its real hardships 
vastly harder. 



80 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Preparations were made for the burial. With his 
own hands, Thomas Lincoln constructed a rough coffin 
for his wife, and she was laid beside the Sparrows on 
the knoll. One party thinks that one neighbor read 
the Scriptures arid another offered prayer; but it is 
probable that she was buried, as her foster-parents 
were, without any ceremonies — silently deposited 
in the ground with no special tribute, save honest 
tears. 

Here, better than elsewhere, we can describe an 
event that is worthy of record. It occurred several 
months after the death of Mrs. Lincoln. 

" You must write a letter for me, Abe, to Parson 
Elkins," said his father, one evening. " You can write 
well enough now to do that." Abraham had passed 
his tenth birthday. 

" If you can tell me what to write, I can do it," 
answered the boy. 

"That I will do. It will be your first letter, you 
know, and you must remember that your father never 
wrote One — never knew enough to write one." 

" What do you want I should write about ? " inquired 
Abraham. 

"Write about the death of your mother. He knows 
nothing about it yet ; and I want to ask him to visit us, 
and preach a funeral sermon." 

"When do you want he should come ?" 

"When he can, I s'pose. He'll take his own time 
for it, though I hope he'll come soon." 

"He may be dead," suggested Abraham. 

"What makes you think so?" 

"He's as likely to die as mother, ain't he? and he 




Mother of Abraham Lincoln. 



DARKER DAYS. 8 1 



may be dead when we don't know it, the same as she's 
dead when he don't know it." 

" Well, there's something in that," answered his 
father ; "but we'll see how you can make out writing a 
letter." 

Pen and paper were provided, and Mr. Lincoln pro- 
ceeded to dictate the letter. He directed him to write 
about the death of Mrs. Lincoln, when it occurred, and 
under what circumstances, and to invite him to visit 
them, and preach a funeral sermon. He also gave a 
description of their new home, and their journey 
thither, and wrote of their future prospects. 

"Now read it over," said Mr. Lincoln. 

"The whole of it?" 

" Of course ; I want to hear it all. I may think of 
something else by that time." 

Abraham commenced to read it, while his father sat 
the very picture of satisfaction. There was genuine 
happiness to him in having his son prepared to write a 
letter. Never before had there been a member of his 
family who could perform this feat. It was a memor- 
able event to him. 

" See how much it is worth to be able to write," said 
he, as Abraham finished reading the letter. " It's worth 
ten times as much as it cost to be able to write only 
that one letter." 

" It ain't much work to learn to write," said Abra- 
ham ; "I'd work as hard again for it before I'd give 
it up." 

" You'd have to give it up, if you were knocked about 
as I was when a boy." 

" I know that." 



82 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" You don't know it as I do ; and I hope you never 
will. But it's worth more than the best farm to know 
how to write a letter as well as that." 

" I shall write one better than that yet," said Abraham. 
" But how long will it take for the letter to go to Parson 
Elkins?" 

" That's more than I can tell ; but it will go there 
some time, and I hope it will bring him here." 

" He won't want to come so far as this," suggested 
Abraham. 

" It ain't so far for him as it was for us." 

" Why ain't it ? " 

" Because he lives nearer the line of Indiana than we 
did. It ain't more than seventy-five miles for him to 
come, and he often rides as far as that." 

The letter went on its errand, and Abraham was 
impatient to learn the result. On the whole, it was 
rather an important event in his young life, — the 
writing of that first letter. Was it strange that he 
should query whether it would reach the good minister 
to whom it was sent? Would it be strange if the 
writing of it proved one of the happy influences that 
started him off upon a career of usefulness and fame ? 
We shall see. 

Mr. Lincoln had much to say to his neighbors about 
the letter that his son had written, and they had much 
to say to him. It was considered remarkable for a boy 
of his age to do such a thing. Not one quarter of the 
adults in all that region could write ; and this fact 
rendered the ability of the boy in this regard all the 
more marvellous. It was noised abroad, and the result 
was, that Abraham had frequent applications from the 



DARKER DAYS. 83 



neighbors to write letters for them. Nor was he indis- 
posed to gratify their wishes. One of his traits of 
character was a generous disposition to assist others, 
and it prompted him to yield to their wishes in writing 
letters for them. Nor was it burdensome to him, but 
the opposite. He delighted to do it. And thus, as 
a consequence of his acquiring the art of penmanship, 
far-distant and long-absent friends of the pioneer fam- 
ilies heard from their loved ones. 

The letter brought the parson. After the lapse of 
about three months he came. The letter reached him 
in Kentucky, after considerable delay, and he embraced 
the first opportunity to visit his old friends. Abraham 
had almost concluded that his letter was lost, as the 
favorite minister did not come. But one day, when 
the lad was about two miles from home, who should he 
see coming but Parson Elkins, on his old bay horse! 
He recognized him at once, and was delighted to see 
him. 

"Why, Abe, is that you?" exclaimed the parson. 
" Am I so near your home ? " 

"Yes, sir; did you get my letter?" Abraham 
thought of the memorable letter the first thing. He 
had good evidence before him that the letter reached 
its destination, but he would know certainly. 

" Your letter!" exclaimed Parson Elkins, inquiringly. 
" I got your father's letter." Abraham did not stop to 
think that the letter went in his father's name. 

" I wrote it," he said. 

" You wrote it ! Is that so?" 

" Yes, sir ; father can't write, you know." 

" O, yes ; I do remember now that he couldn't write ; 



84 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

and so you did it ? Not many boys that can write like 
that." 

"It was the first letter I ever wrote." 

"Better still is that, — the first one? Well, you 
needn't be ashamed of that." 

They were advancing towards the cabin during this 
conversation, Abraham running alongside the horse, 
and the parson looking kindly upon him. 

" There's our house ! " exclaimed Abraham, as they 
came in sight of it. " We live there," pointing with 
his finger. 

" Ah ! that's a pleasant place to live. And there's 
your father, I think, too." 

" Yes, that's he. He'll be glad to see you." 

" And I shall be glad to see him." 

By this time they came near Mr. Lincoln, who re- 
cognized Parson Elkins, and gave him a most cordial 
greeting. He was really taken by surprise, although 
he had not relinquished all expectation of the parson 
coming. 

" You find me in a lonely condition," said Mr. Lin- 
coln. " Death has made a great change in my family." 

" Very great indeed," responded Mr. Elkins. " I 
know how great your loss is ; but ' Whom the Lord 
loveth, he chasteneth.'" 

Assenting to this, Mr. Lincoln continued, — 

" Now, let me say, that, while you are here, I want 
you should preach a funeral sermon. You know all 
about my wife. You will stay over next Sunday, 
won't you ? " It was now Wednesday. 

" Why, yes, I can stay as long as that, though I 
must be about my Master's work." 



DARKER DAYS. 85 

" You will be about your Master's work, if you stay 
and preach a funeral sermon ; and it may do a great 
sight of good." 

" Very true ; and I shall be glad to stay ; for if any 
one ever deserved a funeral sermon, it is your wife. 
But where shall I preach it?" 

" At her grave. I've had that arranged in my mind 
for a long time ; and we'll notify the people ; there will 
be a large attendance. The people thought a deal of 
her here." 

It was arranged that Mr. Elkins should preach the 
funeral sermon at the grave of Mrs. Lincoln on the 
following Sabbath. Accordingly, notice was sent 
abroad to the distance of twelve or fifteen miles, and 
a platform was erected near the grave. Every prep- 
aration was made for the solemn event. Although 
nearly a year had elapsed since Mrs. Lincoln died, yet 
a sermon to her memory was no less interesting to 
her surviving friends. 

In the mean time, Mr. Elkins busied himself in in- 
tercourse with the family ; and he visited some of the 
neighbors, and conversed with them on spiritual 
things. Abraham, tod, received his special attention. 
The boy had improved rapidly since he left Kentucky, 
and his remarkable precocity was suited to draw the 
attention of such a preacher. 

The Sabbath arrived, — a bright, beautiful day. 
From a distance of twelve or fifteen miles, the settlers 
came to listen to the sermon. Entire families assem- 
bled, parents and children, from the oldest to the 
youngest. Hoary age and helpless childhood were 
there. They came in carts, on horseback, and on foot, 



86 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

any way to get there. As they had preaching only 
when one of these pioneer preachers visited that vicin- 
ity, it was a treat to most of the inhabitants, and they 
manifested their interest by a general turn-out. The 
present occasion, however, was an unusual one, as the 
funeral sermon of Mrs. Lincoln was to be preached. 

Parson Elkins was an earnest man, and the occasion 
inspired him with unusual fervor. None of the people 
had ever listened to him before, except the Lincoln 
family, and they were delighted with his services. 
His tribute to the memory of Mrs. Lincoln was con- 
sidered just and excellent. None thought that too 
much was said in her praise. On the other hand, the 
general feeling was rather, as one of the number ex- 
pressed it, that, " say what he might in praise of her, 
he couldn't say too much." 

Abraham was deeply interested in the sermon, and 
it brought all his mother's tenderness and love afresh 
to his mind. To him it was almost like attending her 
funeral over again. Her silent dust was within a few 
feet of him, and vivid recollection of her worth was in 
his heart. 

He drank in the sentiments* of the discourse, too. 
He usually did this, as he was accustomed to think for 
himself. A few years later he often criticized the ser- 
mons to which he listened, much to the amusement of 
those with whom he conversed. He sometimes called 
in question the doctrines preached. This was one of 
the things in which his precocity appeared. It was at 
this point that his mental activity and power were often 
seen. But the sentiments of the aforesaid funeral 
sermon especially impressed his mind. 



DARKER DAYS. 87 



At this time of his life he was a close listener to the 
conversation of the neighbors ; and he would become 
almost vexed over the conversation of some of them, 
who talked so unintelligibly through ignorance, that 
he could not understand them. His active brain 
labored to compass every subject, and he sometimes 
fretted over unlettered talkers whose meaning he 
failed to comprehend. After he came into the pos- 
session of additional books, he was wont to discuss their 
subject-matter, and express his own views freely. 

In this respect he was unlike most boys, who are 
superficial in their views of things. They read, and 
that is the end of it. They think no more about it, — 
at least, they do not inquire into the why and where- 
fore of matters stated ; and so the habit of sliding over 
things loosely is formed. They do not think for 
themselves. They accept things as true, because 
others say they are true. They are satisfied with 
knowing that things are, without asking why they are. 
But Abraham was not so. He thought, reflected ; 
and this developed his mental powers faster than even 
school could do it. 

The reader should understand more about these 
pioneer preachers, in order to appreciate the influ- 
ences that formed Abraham's character, and therefore 
we will stop here to give some account of them. 

They were not generally men of learning and cul- 
ture, though some of them were men of talents. Few, 
if any of them, were ever in college, and some of them 
were never in school. But they had a call to preach, 
as they believed, and good and true hearts for doing it. 
Many of them preached almost every day, travelling 



88 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

from place to place on horseback, studying their ser- 
mons in the saddle, and carrying about with them all 
the library they had in their saddle-bags. They stopped 
where night overtook them, and it was sometimes 
miles away from any human habitation, with no bed 
but the earth, and no covering but the canopy of 
heaven. They labored without a salary, and were 
often poorly clothed and scantily fed, being con- 
strained to preach by the love of Christ. The follow- 
ing account of two pioneer preachers, by Milburn, will 
give the reader a better idea of this class of useful 
men than any description of ours, and it will be read 
with interest : — 

" One of these preachers, who travelled all through 
the Northwestern Territory, a tall, slender, graceful 
man, with a winning countenance and kindly eye, 
greatly beloved by all to whom he ministered, was 
presented by a large landholder with a title-deed of 
three hundred and twenty acres. The preacher was 
extremely poor, and there had been many times when 
he received scarcely enough support to keep soul and 
body together. Yet he labored on, and did much 
good. He seemed pleased with his present of land, 
and went on his way with a grateful heart. But in 
three months he returned, and met his benefactor at 
the door, saying, ' Here, sir, I want to give you back 
your title-deed.' 

" ' What's the matter ? ' said his friend, surprised. 
' Any flaw in it ? ' 

" ' No.' 

'"Isn't it good land?' 

" ' Good as any in the State.' 



DARKER DAYS. 89 



" ' Sickly situation ? ' 

" ' Healthy as any other.' 

" " Do you think I repent my gift ? ' 

" ' I haven't the slightest reason to doubt your gen- 
erosity.' 

" ' Why don't you keep it, then ? ' 

" 'Well, sir,' said the preacher, 'you know I am 
very fond of singing, and there's one hymn in my 
book the singing of which is one of the greatest com- 
forts of my life. I have not been able to sing it with 
my whole heart since I was here. A part of it runs 
in this way : — 

" No foot of land do I possess 
No cottage in the wilderness ; 
A poor wayfaring man, 
I lodge awhile in tents below, 
And gladly wander to and fro, 
Till I my Canaan gain ; 
There is my house and portion fair, 
My treasure and my heart are there, 
And my abiding home." 

. "'Take your title-deed,' he added; 'I had rather 
sing that hymn with a clear conscience than own 
America.' 

" There was another preacher of the pioneer class 
so intent upon his work that hunger and nakedness 
did not affright him. He was more scholarly than 
most of the preachers around him, and often sat up 
half the night, at the cabins of the hunters where he 
stopped, to study. These cabins were about twelve 
by fourteen feet, and furnished accommodations for 
the family, sometimes numbering ten or twelve chil- 



90 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

dren ; and, as the forests abounded in 'varmints,' the 
hens and chickens were taken in for safe keeping. 
Here, after the family had retired, he would light a 
pine knot, ' stick it up in one corner of the huge fire- 
place, lay himself down on the flat of his stomach in 
the ashes,' and study till far into the night. 

" Many a time was the bare, bleak mountain-side 
his bed, the wolves yelling a horrid chorus in his ears. 
Sometimes he was fortunate enough to find a hollow 
log, within whose cavity he inserted his body, and 
found it a good protection from the rain or frost. 

" Once, seated at the puncheon dinner-table with 
a hunter's family, the party is startled by affrighted 
screams from the door-yard. Rushing out, they be- 
hold a great wildcat bearing off the youngest child. 
Seizing a rifle from the pegs over the door, the 
preacher raises it to his shoulder, casts a rapid glance 
along the barrel, and delivers his fire. The aim has 
been unerring, but too late, — the child is dead, already 
destroyed by the fierce animal. 

" That same year he had a hand-to-hand fight with 
a bear, from which conflict he came forth victor, his 
knife entering the vitals of the creature just as he was 
about to be enfolded in the fatal hug. 

" Often he emerged from the wintry stream, his 
garments glittering in the clear, cold sunlight, as if 
they had been of burnished steel armor, chill as the 
touch of death. During that twelvemonth, in the 
midst of such scenes, he travelled on foot and horse- 
back four thousand miles, preached four hundred times, 
and found, on casting up the receipts, — yarn socks, 
woollen vests, cotton shirts, and a little silver change, 



DARKER DAYS. 9 1 

— that his salary amounted to twelve dollars and ten 
cents. 

" Yet he persevered, grew in knowledge and influ- 
ence, became a doctor of divinity, and finally was 
made president of a university. He is known on the 
page of history as Henry Bidleman Bascom." 

Such were the pioneer preachers of the West ; of 
simple-hearted piety, lofty faith, a fiery zeal, un- 
wavering fortitude, and a practical turn of mind, 
through which they did a great work for God. 

We have made this digression from the thread of 
our story, to show what influences of the ministry 
were thrown around Abraham's early life. It is true 
the preachers to whom he listened were not "circuit- 
riders," as travelling preachers were called. They 
were Baptist ministers, who lived within twenty miles, 
and who occasionally preached in that neighborhood. 
During the first few years of Abraham's residence in 
Indiana, there was one Jeremiah Cash, who sometimes 
preached in the vicinity, and the young listener be- 
came much interested in him. A few years later, two 
others came to that section of country to live. Their 
names were John Richardson and Young Lamar. 
One of them dwelt seven or eight miles from Abra- 
ham's home on the north, and the other eight or ten 
miles to the south ; and both of them were wont to 
preach at Mr. Lincoln's cabin, and at other cabins, as 
they had opportunity. Sometimes they preached in 
the open air, as Mr. Elkins did the funeral sermon. 
This was always the case when more people attended 
than could crowd into a log-house. 



92 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Such was all the pulpit influence that reached the 
boyhood and youth of Abraham. Yet it left indelible 
impressions upon his mind. Though it was small and 
inconstant, apparently, in comparison with the pulpit 
advantages that boys enjoy at the present day, it 
imbued his soul with sentiments that were never 
obliterated. He was much indebted to the unpolished 
eloquence of those pioneer preachers, whose sterling 
piety caused them to proclaim the truth with fidelity 
and earnestness. This was one of the few influences 
that contributed to make him a remarkable man. 




CHAPTER VII. 

BRIGHTER HOURS. 

|BRAHAM deeply felt the change that death 
had wrought in his cabin home, and, for 
weeks, his mind was absorbed in his loss. 
Perhaps his oppressive sense of loneliness 
and his grief would have continued, but for an unex- 
pected blessing that came to him in the shape of a 
book. His father met with a copy of The Pilgrim's 
Progress, at the house of an acquaintance, twenty 
miles away or more, and he borrowed it for Abraham. 
The boy was never more happily surprised than he 
was when his father, on his return, said : 

" Look here, Abe, I've found something for you," 
at the same time exhibiting the book. 

" Found it ! " exclaimed Abraham, supposing that his 

father meant that he picked it up in the woods or fields. 

• " No, no ; you don't understand me. I meant that I 

came across it at Pierson's house, and I borrowed it for 

you." 

" Pilgrim's Progress," said Abraham, taking the book 
and reading the title ; " that will be good, I should think." 
He knew nothing about the book ; he never heard of it 
before. 



94 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"I shall want to hear it," said his father. "I heard 
about that book many years ago, but I never heard it 
read." 

"What is it about?" asked Abraham. 

" You'll find that out by reading it," answered his 
father. 

"And I won't be long about it neither," continued 
Abraham. " I know I shall like it." 

" I know you will, too." 

" I don't see how you know, if you never heard it 
read." 

" Onaccount of what I've heard about it." 

And it turned out to be so. Abraham sat down to 
read the volume very much as some other boys would 
sit down to a good dinner. He found it better even 
than he expected. It was the first volume that he was 
provided with after the spelling-book, Catechism, and 
Bible, and a better one could not have been found. 
He read it through once, and was half-way through it 
a second time, when he received a present of another 
volume, in which he became deeply interested. It was 
iEsop's Fables, presented to him, partly on account of 
his love of books, and partly because it would serve to 
occupy his mind and lighten his sorrow. 

He read the fables over and over until he could repeat 
almost the entire contents of the volume. He was 
thoroughly interested in the moral lesson that each 
fable taught, and derived therefrom many valuable 
hints that he carried with him through life. On the 
whole, he spent more time over ^sop's Fables than he 
did over The Pilgrim's Progress, although he was really 
charmed by the latter. But there was a practical turn 



BRIGHTER HOURS. 95 

to the fables that interested him, and he could easily 
recollect the stories. Perhaps his early familiarity 
with this book laid the foundation for that facility at 
apt story-telling that distinguished him through life. 
It is easy to see how such a volume might beget and 
foster a taste in this direction. Single volumes have 
moulded the reader's character and decided his destiny 
more than once, and that, too, when far less absorbing 
interest was manifested in the book. It is probable, 
then, that ^Esop's Fables exerted a decided influence 
upon Abraham's character and life. The fact that he 
read the volume so much as to commit the larger part 
of it to memory adds force to this opinion. 

With two new books of such absorbing interest, it 
was not strange that Abraham was disposed to neglect 
his daily labor. His father could readily discover that 
^sop had more attractions for him than ax or hoe. 
Nor was he inclined to break the spell that bound him 
until he actually feared that the books would make him 
"lazy." 

" Come, Abe, you mustn't neglect your work ; we've 
lots to do, and books must not interfere," was his 
father's gentle rebuke. 

" In a minute," answered the boy, just like most 
other boys of that age, who are "book- worms." 

" That's what makes boys lazy, waiting to play or 
read, when they ought to be at work," continued his 
father. " All study and no work is 'most as bad as all 
work and no study." 

" Only a minute, and I'll go," added Abraham, so 
absorbed in his book that he scarcely knew what answer 
he made. 



96 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" It must be a short minute," retorted his father in 
a tone of injured authority. 

" I'll work hard enough to make it up when I get at 
it," said Abraham, still delaying. 

" I don't know about that. I'm afraid that your 
thoughts will be somewhere else ; so put down the book 
and come on." 

With evident reluctance the young reader laid down 
his book, preliminary to obeying orders. 

"Good boys obey at once," continued his father; 
"don't have to drive 'em like cattle." 

"I only wanted to read a minute longer," answered 
Abraham, by way of palliating his offence. 

"And I only wanted you shouldn't," exclaimed his 
father angrily. " I know what is best for you. I'm 
willing you should read and write, but you must work 
when work drives." 

It was altogether new for Abraham to exhibit so much 
disobedience as he did after he became enthusiastic 
over The Pilgrim's Progress and yEsop's Fables. Nor 
was he conscious of possessing a disobedient spirit ; 
for no such spirit was in his heart. He was simply 
infatuated with the new books. 

We must not conceal the fact that his father had 
been somewhat annoyed by the boy's method of im- 
proving his penmanship by writing with chalk or a 
charred stick upon almost any surface that came in 
his way. But for his paternal pride over this ac- 
quisition of his boy, he might have checked him in 
this singular way of improvement. One incident oc- 
curred that served to reconcile his father in the main 
to his scrawls here and there, although he may have 



BRIGHTER HOURS. 97 

thought still that Abraham was carrying the matter 
too far. 

An acquaintance came into the field where father 
and son were at work, when his eye was arrested by 
letters cut in the mellow soil. 

"What's that?" he inquired. 

Abraham smiled, and let his father answer. 

"What's what?" 

" Why, this writing, — it looks as if somebody had 
been writing on the ground." 

"Abe's work, I s'pose." 

"Abe didn't do that ! " answered the neighbor. 

"I did do it with a stick," said the boy. 

"What is it?" The man couldn't read. 

"It's my name." 

"Your name, hey? Likely story." 

"Well, 'tis, whether you believe it or not;" and 
he proceeded to spell it out, — " A-b-r-a-h-a-m 

L-I-N-C-O-L-N." 

" Sure enough, it is ; and you certainly did it, Abe?" 

" Yes, sir ; and I will do it again, if you want to see 
me;" and, without waiting for an answer, he caught 
up a stick, and wrote his name again in the dirt. 

"There 'tis," said Abraham. 

"I see it, and it's well done," answered the neigh- 
bor. 

And there, on, the soil of Indiana, Abraham Lincoln 
wrote his name, with a stick, in large characters, — a 
sort of prophetic act, that students of history may love 
to ponder. For, since that day, he has written his 
name, by public acts, on the annals of every State in 
the Union. 



98 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

From the time, however, that Abraham became ab- 
sorbed in The Pilgrim's Progress and ^Ssop's Fables, 
he was subject to the charge of being "lazy." The 
charge gained force, too, as he grew older, and more 
books and increasing thirst for knowledge controlled 
him. Dennis Hanks said : " Abe was lazy, very lazy. 
He was always reading, scribbling, ciphering, writing 
poetry, and such like." John Romine declared that 
" Abe was awful lazy. He worked for me ; was always 
reading and thinking ; I used to get mad at him. He 
worked for me pulling fodder. I say Abe was awful 
lazy. He would laugh and talk, and crack jokes, and 
tell stories all the time ; didn't love work, but did dearly 
love his pay. He worked for me frequently, a few days 
only at a time. He said to me one day, that his father 
taught him to work, but never learned him to love it." 

Mrs. Crawford, for whose husband Abraham worked, 
and in whose cabin he read and told stories, said : "Abe 
was no hand to pitch into work like killing snakes." 
At the same time, Mr. Crawford could find no man to 
suit him as well as Abraham, when the latter was but 
fifteen years of age. 

We protest, here and now, against this charge of 
laziness which some biographers have made so promi- 
nent. Nothing was ever more common than to charge 
studious boys and girls with laziness. A great many 
men and women, who know no better, bring the same 
charge against professional gentlemen. Any person 
who is not obliged to work on the farm, or at the forge, 
or engaged in some other manual labor, for a livelihood, 
they pronounce lazy and aristocratic. Through sheer 
ignorance, studying and literary aspirations are re- 



BRIGHTER HOURS. 99 

garded as proof of laziness. It was so in Abraham's 
time. Because he possessed talents that craved knowl- 
edge as the appetite craves food, leading him to snatch 
fragments of time for reading, and perhaps to devote 
hours to the bewitching pastime that ought to have 
been given to hard work, careless, ignorant observ- 
ers called him "lazy." It is a base slander. There 
was not a lazy bone in him. The boy who will improve 
such bits of time as he can save from his daily toil for 
study, and sit up nights to read the Life of Washington, 
or master a problem in mathematics, is not lazy. He 
may love a book more than he loves chopping or thresh- 
ing, just as another may love the latter more than he 
does the former ; but he is not lazy. Laziness wastes 
the spare hours of the day in bringing nothing to pass, 
and gives the night to sleep instead of mental improve- 
ment. As many of the busiest and most cheerful 
workers in our country are its scholars, without a par- 
ticle of the element of laziness in their composition, so 
many of the most industrious and noble boys are those 
who prefer a book to the plow, and would rather go to 
school than to harvesting. That was true of Abraham 
Lincoln. His heart was set on books; but his hands 
were so ready for hard work, that any farmer was glad to 
hire him at the age of fourteen or fifteen years of age, 
because he would do more work than any youth of his 
age. He would chop more wood in a day, lift larger 
logs, and "pull more fodder," boy as he was, than half 
the men who hired him. 

True, from the time that John Baldwin, the black- 
smith, came into the neighborhood, when Abraham 
was about ten years old, he would steal away to the 



IOO PIONEER HOME- TO WHITE HOUSE. 

smithy's shop to listen to his stories. John was a great 
story-teller, and he was fond of children also, and these 
were attractions enough for such a precocious boy. 
His mind yearned for thoughts ; it was desperate for 
entertainment ; and the blacksmith's stories, and inci- 
dents of his life, supplied both thoughts and entertain- 
ment. He spent much time with this jolly son of Vul- 
can before he began to tell stories himself, and, after 
that, he exchanged them with the smutty toiler at the 
forge. But there was no evidence of laziness in those 
visits to the blacksmith's shop. And when we place 
this freak of a singularly bright boy, together with all 
his other acts that denoted laziness to the ignorant 
pioneers, beside the fact, that in manhood, to the day 
of his death, Abraham Lincoln was one of the hardest 
workers who ever lived, both at manual and intellectual 
labor, ignoring all ten hour systems, and toiling fifteen, 
sixteen, and even eighteen hours a day, to satisfy his 
honorable ambition, the charge of laziness is branded as 
slander on the part of those who make it. " The boy 
is father to the man," — the lazy boy makes the lazy 
man, and vice versa. If Abraham was a lazy boy, his 
manhood completely belied his youth, and the old 
maxim is exploded. 

We have seen that they who called him lazy 
coupled the charge with the statement that he was 
always " reading and thinking," evidently considering 
that his love of books was proof of a disposition to 
shirk labor. Their ignorance is the explanation of, 
and excuse for, their charge. 

We have made this digression, at this point, in 
order to direct the attention of the reader to an impor- 



BRIGHTER HOURS. IOI 

tant element of Lincoln's character, that will find 
ample support in the sequel. 

Now that we are speaking of Abraham's books, we 
may record the facts about two other volumes, that 
came into his hands within two years after ^Esop's 
Fables. They were Ramsay's Life of Washington, 
and Robinson Crusoe. 

Dennis Hanks came home one day and said to 
Abraham, — 

" Don't you want to read the life of Washington ? " 

" Of course I do," was his reply. " What do you 
ask me that for ?" 

" Because I've seen one." 

" Where ? " 

"Down at Anderson's Creek." 

"Whom did it belong to?" 

Dennis told him, adding, " He offered to lend it to 
me." 

" Then / can borrow it ? " 

"Any time you are there; there's no doubt of it." 

Without recording the details of this affair, it will 
answer our purpose to say that Abraham embraced 
the first opportunity to secure the loan of that valu- 
able biography. He knew that Washington was 
called the "father of his country" — that he was 
commander-in-chief of the army in the American 
Revolution. He had been told, also, of the part his 
grandfather took in the " war of independence." 
This was all he knew of the illustrious statesman 
whose life he purposed to read ; but this was quite 
enough to awaken his enthusiasm over the volume. 
It was read and re-read with the deepest interest, and 



102 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

its contents discussed with his father and Dennis, both 
of whom learned more about Washington and his 
times from Abraham than they ever knew before. 

It is not known how he came into possession of 
Robinson Crusoe. Doubtless the book was borrowed ; 
and it proved a source of genuine satisfaction to 
him. Once reading it only created the desire to read 
it a second time, and even a third time. There was a 
kind of witchery about the book to his active mind, 
different from that exerted over him even by The Pil- 
grim's Progress. He could scarcely command language 
to express his admiration of the volume. 




CHAPTER VIII. 

A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 

|R. LINCOLN remained a widower until 
December, 1819. During this time his 
only housekeeper was his daughter Sarah. 
Abraham was a " handy boy " about the 
cabin, and often rendered timely aid to his sister in 
her daily work. He became so expert in household 
matters, that, a few years later, when he "" worked 
out " among the farmers, their wives pronounced him 
the " best hand " because he was so " handy," and was 
willing to make fires, bring wood and water, or tend 
the baby. It was evidently a good school for him, 
since his manhood was characterized by being " handy 
about the house." A dweller in Springfield, Illinois, 
where Abraham commenced his public life, a citizen 
remembers how he " used to draw the baby back and 
forth in front of his house, early in the summer morn- 
ing, while his wife was getting breakfast, at the same 
time reading a book that he held in one hand." 

But Thomas Lincoln needed a wife, and his son 
needed a mother. Household affairs had been left 
"at loose ends," as they are likely to be where there 
is no mother to superintend. There was not that 



104 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

neatness and order necessary to make even a cabin 
home attractive ; and what clothes the children had 
were in a very dilapidated condition. It was both 
wise and necessary for Lincoln to go in search of a 
wife. 

He remembered Sally Bush, of Elizabethtown, 
Kentucky, to whom he once proposed, but who pre- 
ferred another, one Johnson by name. She married 
the latter instead of Lincoln. Her husband died three 
years before Mrs. Lincoln did, and Thomas Lincoln 
knew that she was a widow. Where would he be so 
much inclined to go as there for a good wife ? Where 
could he go with more hope of success ? 

Lincoln posted away to Kentucky, found Widow 
Johnson, proposed, and was accepted. On the fol- 
lowing day they were married. Mrs. Johnson pos- 
sessed a good supply of furniture for that day, so 
much as to require a four-horse team to remove it to 
Indiana. She owned a bureau that cost forty dollars, 
a clothes-chest, table and six chairs, together with a quan- 
tity of bedding, crockery, tin-ware and iron-ware. Ralph 
Browne, Mr. Lincoln's cousin, removed both goods 
and bride, with her three children — John, Sarah and 
Matilda — to Indiana. With this rather large acces- 
sion for one match, Thomas Lincoln numbered eight 
souls in his household — all to dwell in a cabin with a 
single room and loft. Still, it was, on the whole, as 
the sequel will show, the best bargain that Thomas 
Lincoln ever made. 

Abraham was filled with wonder on the arrival of 
his new mother and her goods. Such a quantity of 
" household stuff " his eyes never beheld before ; and 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 105 

he could scarcely believe that his home would boast, 
henceforth, a "bureau, clothes-chest and real chairs." 
His stepmother, too, won his heart at once. He 
thought she was just the woman to own such a 
bureau — the latter was a fitting accompaniment to 
the former. 

The second Mrs. Lincoln was better educated than 
the first. She could not only read and write, but she 
was reared in girlhood under more favorable circum- 
stances than Nancy Hanks. In her teens she was 
rather the belle of the town, or, at least, she was one 
of them. One person said, " she was the best and 
proudest of the Bushes." She dressed better, was 
more tidy and brighter than most of the girls around 
her. The girl was mother to the woman, so that 
Thomas Lincoln found he had a wife in her who was 
ambitious for personal appearance and comfort. One 
of the first things she set her husband about, after 
settling in Indiana, was to make a floor to the cabin. 
Then she posted him away to the only place where he 
could buy window-sashes and doors, twenty or thirty 
miles distant, for these indispensable articles. When 
the Lincoln cabin had a floor, a real door and real 
windows, and was furnished with a veritable bed, 
bureau, chairs, crockery, etc., it presented quite a 
respectable appearance. It was certainlv a much 
neater, more orderly and attractive abo^ • than it ev 
was before. The change which Mrs. L coin wrc 
in the habitation, in a very short time, indicative 

of a smart, enterprising woman, posses g mm fa 
ecutive ability. 

It was a glorious day for Abraham \ hen a faithful 



106 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

and intelligent stepmother was installed over his dreary- 
home. Her advent brought such cheerfulness to him 
as he had not known since his own mother was laid in 
her grave. He gave her a hearty welcome, and a large 
place in his heart. Her son and daughters, too, he 
received as a true brother. They were better clad than 
himself and more tidy ; but soon, under his good step- 
mother's care, he was made as neat and prim as they. 
The two families of children became as one family soon, 
and no discord ever rose among them. Abraham 
became strongly attached to the two Johnson girls, 
who were bright and social ; and they came to regard 
him, not only as a brother, but also as a prodigy. Their 
coming lifted Abraham into a higher plane of social life. 

Dennis Hanks, who was a member of the family at 
the time, says, " In a few weeks all had changed ; and 
where everything was wanting, now all was snug and 
comfortable. She was a woman of great energy, of 
remarkable good sense, very industrious and saving, 
and also very neat and tidy in her habits, and knew 
exactly how to manage children. She took an especial 
liking to young Abe. Her love for him was warmly 
returned, and continued to the day of his death. But 
few children loved their parents as he loved his step- 
mother. He was encouraged by her to study, and any 
wish on his part was gratified when it could be done. 
: children got along finely together, as 

they : n children of the same parents. Mrs. 

iscovered that Abraham was a boy of 

on natural talents, and that, if rightly trained, 

t future was before him, and she did all in her 

p those talents." 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 107 

We may add, here, once for all, that Dennis Hanks 
subsequently married one of the Johnson girls, and 
Allen Hall, another cousin of Abraham, the other. A 
granddaughter of Dennis Hanks, Mrs. H. A. Chap- 
man, says of Mrs. Lincoln, " My grandmother was a 
very tall woman, straight as an arrow, fair complexion, 
and was, as I first remember her, very handsome, 
sprightly, talkative, and proud ; wore her hair curled 
till gray; was kind-hearted, and very charitable, and 
also very industrious." 

A new mother was not the only boon that Abraham 
received in that winter of 1819-20. For the first time 
in Indiana a school opened for him. 

" I hear that a man by the name of Dorsey is going 
to keep school," said Mr. Lincoln to his son; "and 
you can go, and the other children too." He learned 
the news of a neighbor whom he met on that day. 

"Who is Dorsey?" inquired Abraham. 

"I don't know, only he is a man who is going to 
keep school down by Little Pigeon Creek; and he's 
good in reading, writing, and ciphering." 

"A good chance for you, Abe," remarked his step- 
mother, whom we shall know hereafter only as mother. 
"You want to know something about arithmetic as soon 
as you can ; the sooner the better." 

" Where shall I get an arithmetic to study ? " 

" As to that, I can find one somewhere," replied his 
father. " I shall go to market before the week is out, 
and I will see what I can find among the settlers there 
on the way. You must study arithmetic somehow." 

" A good day for you, Abe, when you learn to 
cipher," added his mother. " Even a poor chance to 



Io8 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

learn that is better than none. Two miles will be 
just far enough for you to walk to keep your legs 
limber." 

Settlers had come into that region rapidly, and had 
put up a log-house, two miles from Lincoln's, to serve 
as a schoolhouse whenever an occasion might arise. It 
was a poor affair. Dorsey could just stand up under 
the roof, and he was no taller than Abraham. It had 
"holes for windows," in which greased paper was used 
instead of glass. A large fire-place, that would admit 
logs four feet in length, was the only cheerful object 
within ; and the boys appeared to think so ; for they 
piled on the fuel by the half cord, and made the biggest 
blaze possible. 

To this pioneer school Abraham went with a glad 
heart. His father found an old arithmetic somewhere, 
in a damaged condition, and he bought it for him. His 
mother made him a new suit of clothes, for his old suit 
was much the worse for wear. It was not made of 
broadcloth or cassimere ; but of such material as could 
be obtained. It consisted of a linsey-woolsey shirt, 
buckskin breeches, low shoes made of leather tanned 
in the family, and a cap of coon-skin. Overcoats 
were unknown. 

Here Abraham became particularly interested in 
arithmetic and "spelling for places." In reading and 
writing, he was fully equal to his teacher, and, also in 
spelling. But he never spelled in classes before for 
places, an exercise which the boys christened with the 
name, "trapping up and down." Abraham always 
"trapped up," so his contestants said. He never 
missed a word, and was always found at the head of his 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 1 09 

class, except when he took his place at the foot, accord- 
ing to the custom, to "trap up" again. 

This school continued but a few weeks ; and, as 
Abraham never had but two more opportunities to 
attend school, we shall devote the remainder of this 
chapter to the details of his experience. 

Four years later — in 1823 — one Andrew Craw- 
ford, who lived in Spencer County, opened a school in 
the same log-house in which Dorsey taught. He was 
much better educated than any of Abraham's previous 
teachers. He was first-class for that day and place. 
He was a master, too, with whom boys could not 
trifle. He was " great on thrashin'," one boy said. 

Abraham attended this school, and became more 
enthusiastic than ever over his studies. He had 
found a more congenial teacher; and Crawford ap- 
peared to understand him thoroughly, and to know 
how to lead him. Teacher and pupil were never on 
better terms than were Crawford and Abraham. 
Crawford saw in the lad the foreshadowing of a great 
man. He had no doubt of it, and he did not hesitate 
to express his admiration of the boy. He said to Mr. 
Lincoln one day : 

" Abe is a wonderful boy — the best scholar I ever 
had. He's never satisfied without knowing all about 
his lessons. He wants to know every thing that 
anybody else knows, and he don't see why he 
can't." 

"That's Abe exactly," responded Mr. Lincoln. 
"He cares more for a book than anything else. I 
sometimes wish he liked work as much as he does a 
book." 



IIO PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"He couldn't like both equally well," continued 
Crawford ; "that's impossible. If he liked work with 
all his soul, he would not be so great a scholar — he 
could not be such a scholar." 

"May be ; but work is more necessary to backwoods 
life than books," said Mr. Lincoln, who failed to look 
into the future as Mr. Crawford did. " Pioneers ought 
to know more than I do, but they needn't know every 
thing." 

" But Abe will not live in the backwoods all his 
days. Even if he should continue to live in Spencer 
County, he will not be a backwoodsman long. As 
immigration is going on now, by the time he is thirty 
years old he will be out of pioneer life. But such a 
boy will rise above such a life. His ability and perse- 
verance will overcome obstacles, and he will make his 
mark. Abe is as good, too, as he is bright." 

" Yes ; Abe's a good boy," responded his father. 
" We can't expect boys will do right always, you know ; 
but Abe's good to mind. His mother thinks there 
never was such a boy." And this last testimony was 
a confirmation of what we have said of his filial love 
and obedience. 

" I was struck with his honesty the other day," 
added Mr. Crawford. " I saw that a buck's horn that 
was nailed on the schoolhouse was broken off, and I 
concluded that some of the boys did it. So I asked 
them the next day, when they had all got still, which 
of them broke it, and Abe answered promptly, 'I 
did it.' " 

"Just like him," said his father. 

" ' I said, how happened that, Abe ? ' " 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. Ill 

" I didn't mean to do it," he replied. " I hung on 
it, and it broke. I wouldn't have done it if I had 
thought it would break." 

" I dare say he spoke the truth," said his father. 

" I have no doubt of it ; but few boys would own 
up like that. Most boys would try to conceal what 
they had done, and wouldn't own it till they were 
obliged to." 

" That's so ; and I've thought that it might be owing 
a little to the Life of Washington that he read some 
time ago. He seemed to think a sight of his owning 
up that he cut the cherry tree with his new hatchet ; 
and he spoke of it ever so many times." 

"Well, this was certainly like that," said Mr. Craw- 
ford ; " and I took occasion to say that it was a noble 
trait to confess a wrong that was done, instead of try- 
ing to conceal it." 

" He never was disposed to conceal his wrong- 
doings. He takes all the blame to himself, and don't 
try to put it on to anybody else." 

" I should think so ; and such truthfulness is worthy 
of all praise," said Mr. Crawford. 

Nat Grigsby attended Crawford's school, and he 
says : " Essays and poetry were not taught in this 
school, but Abe took them up on his own account. He 
first wrote short sentences on 'cruelty to animals,' and 
finally came out with a regular composition on the 
subject. He was very much annoyed and pained by 
the conduct of the boys, who were in the habit of 
catching terrapins and putting coals of fire on their 
backs. He would chide us, tell us it was wrong, and 
would write against it." 



112 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

This statement shows that Abraham's teacher en- 
couraged him in just those exercises that contributed 
to his rapid mental growth. Evidently he understood 
the boy, as we have said, and gave him an impulse, 
onward and upward, that he never ceased to feel. 
Here he first attempted the role of poet, as well as 
essayist ; and, also, played the part of orator. He pos- 
sessed a remarkable memory, and could repeat long 
paragraphs from the books he had read and the ser- 
mons he had heard. He was wont to recite these for 
the amusement of his companions ; and, one day, he 
was displaying his oratorical powers upon a stump, 
when one of the boys threw a terrapin against a tree 
near the speaker, crushing the poor animal so cruelly 
that he writhed upon the ground, exciting the tender 
sympathies of Abraham, and causing him to strike out 
upon an oration or sermon (whatever we may call it) 
against cruelty to animals, denouncing the act as in- 
human, and holding up the boy who did it to scorn 
until he writhed under the scorching rebuke well nigh 
as much as the terrapin did through his thoughtless 
act. 

At another time he became the counsel for a ter- 
rapin on whose back the boys were putting coals of 
fire. 

"Don't," exclaimed Abraham, as if he felt the burn- 
ing coals upon his own back. 

" Don't what ? " responded a boy, at the same time 
giving the terrapin a punch with a stick. 

"Don't be so cruel," continued Abraham; "how 
would you like to have coals put on your own back ? " 

" Try it, and see," shouted one. 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 113 

"Well, it is cruel to treat him so — and mean, too," 
persisted Abraham. 

"Why, Abe, it's nothin' but a terrapin," interjected 
a boy. 

"Don't terrapins have feelings ? " responded our hero. 

" I don't know whether they do or not," replied the 
first named boy, at the same time adding another coal 
of fire to the animal's back. 

" You shan't do it, Nat, unless you are stronger than 
I am," exclaimed Abraham, knocking the last coal from 
the animal's back, and pushing the boy with the stick 
aside. 

" You're a chicken-hearted feller, Abe, as ever lived," 
continued Nat. " I should think the terrapin was your 
brother." 

" Whether he is or not, you won't burn him any more 
while I'm 'round." 

" That's it," said Dave Turnham, who stood looking 
on. " I go in for Abe. He wouldn't hurt a fly." 

" He would if he trod on it," retorted Nat, aiming to 
be funny. 

Mr. Crawford had witnessed a part of this scene, 
and he came out at this stage of the affair, and re- 
buked the cruelty of the boys who were torturing the 
terrapin, while he commended Abraham for his ten- 
derness. 

" We are coming to the Rule of Three now," said 
Mr. Crawford to Abraham, " and that will be all you 
can learn of me." 

"Is it hard ? " asked the boy. 

" It won't be for you. I think you can get through 
it by the time your father wants you this spring." 



114 PIONEER. HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Why is it called the Rule of Three?" 

" I hardly know. Some call it Simple Proportion, 
and that is the true name for it. You will see a reason 
for it, too, when you come to master it." 

"What if I don't master it ? " 

"I '11 risk you on that. It won't be of so much use 
to you as what you have been over already. Some 
people don't study it." 

" My father never studied arithmetic," said Abraham. 

" Nor mine. Not half the folks about here have 
studied it." 

" Father never had a chance to study it when he was 
a boy." 

" That's the case with a good many." 

" Well, I can cipher now in Addition, Subtraction, 
Multiplication, and Division." 

"Yes, you understand these rules well, and you will 
always find use for them." 

Encouraged by his instructor, Abraham grappled 
with the so-called "Rule of Three." It was some- 
what more difficult for him to comprehend this rule 
than it was the previous ones ; yet he was not discour- 
aged. His discriminating mind and patient labor did 
the work for him, and he enjoyed the happiness of un- 
derstanding Proportion by the time his school-days 
were over. We do not mean that he comprehended it 
fully, so as to be complete master of it, but he under- 
stood it, as we are wont to say that pupils understand 
the rules they have been over at school. At least, he 
made such progress that he was prepared to become 
master of all the rules he had studied, by devoting his 
leisure moments to them thereafter. 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 1 15 

We must stop here to relate another incident of 
those school-days, because it illustrates a trait of char- 
acter for which Abraham was well known in his youth. 
We often find the key to a boy's character by observing 
his intercourse with companions at school. 

It was near the end of his term of school at Craw- 
ford's. Several boys were on their way home at the 
close of school in company with Abraham, when a 
difficulty arose between two of them about spelling a 
word. 

"You didn't spell it right," said John. 

"Yes, I did spell it right," replied Daniel. "I spelt 
it just as Mr. Crawford did." 

"He said you didn't spell it so." 

" I know he said so, but he didn't understand me. I 
spelt it just as he did." 

"I know you didn't," continued John. 

"And I know I did," retorted Daniel. "You are a 
liar, if you say so." 

" Don't call me a liar ! " exclaimed John, doubling up 
his fist. "You'll get it, if you say that again !" 

"I stump you to do it, old madpiece ! " said Daniel, 
putting himself in an attitude of defiance. 

"Come, Dan, don't," said Abraham, throwing one of 
his arms over his neck. 

" Let him come, if he wants to," said John, in a great 
rage ; " I'll give it to him : he's a great coward." 

"What's the use, John?" interrupted Abraham, 
throwing his other arm around John's shoulders, so 
as to bring himself between the two wrathy boys ; 
"that ain't worth fighting about." 

"Yes, it is, too," answered John. "You wouldn't 



Il6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

be called a liar by anybody I know, and I won't 
neither." Abraham was now walking along between 
the two boys, with his arms over their shoulders. 

"Yes, I would, too; and I shouldn't care neither, if 
it wasn't true." 

"Nobody would think of calling you a liar," added 
John. 

"They wouldn't call you so, if you didn't care any- 
thing about it," answered Abraham ; and there was 
much truth in the remark. 

By this time the two combatants had cooled off con- 
siderably, and Daniel put out the last spark of fire by 
adding, "I'll take it back, John." 

"That's a good fellow," said Abraham, while John 
was mute. Five minutes thereafter the two vexed 
boys were on good terms, their difficulties having been 
adjusted by Abraham, "the peace-maker," as he was 
often called. He could not endure to see broils among 
his companions, and he often taxed all his kind feelings 
and ingenuity to settle them. This trait of character 
was prominent through all his life. Last, though not 
least, we had an exhibition of it, when, at the outbreak 
of the Rebellion in 1861, he put his arms around the 
neck of both North and South, and attempted to recon- 
cile them. But his effort proved less successful than 
it did in the case of John and Daniel ; for the southern 
combatant was fully determined to fight. 

Abraham was by far the best speller in Crawford's 
school. It was not expected by teacher or pupils that 
he would miss a word. More than that he sometimes 
taxed his ingenuity to help others out of difficulty in 
their spelling classes. One day a class was spelling, 



A NEW M OTHER AND SCHOOLS. 117 

and Crawford put out the word defied. The girl to 
whom the word was given spelled it de-f-i-de. The 
next one, d-e-f-y-d ; the third, d-e-f-y-d-e ; the fourth, 
d-e-f-y-e-d ; and soon, not one spelling the word cor- 
rectly, Crawford became angry. 

" What ! " he bawled out, " these big boys and girls 
not able to spell the simple word defied! There 
shan't one of you go home to-night if you don't spell 
it, you lazy, ignorant louts." 

Just then, a girl in the class by the name of Roby, 
to whom Abraham was somewhat partial, looked up, 
and took a valuable hint from his smiling face. To 
use her own language, as she described the scene many 
years thereafter : — 

" I saw Abe at the window ; he had his finger in his 
eye, and a smile on his face. I immediately took the 
hint, that I must change the letter y into an i. Hence 
I spelled the word, — the class was let out. I felt 
grateful to Abe for this simple thing." 

Notwithstanding Crawford's was a " pioneer college," 
he taught "manners." He rather prided himself on 
teaching his pupils etiquette, at least, as far as he 
knew. Imparting to his scholars some idea about 
cultivated society in thoroughly civilized places, he 
converted his school-room into a parlor of " ladies and 
gentlemen." One pupil was required to go out, then 
re-enter in the role of a gentleman or lady stranger, 
whom another pupil introduced to every one in .the 
room. Imagine Abraham, almost six feet high, though 
but fifteen years of age, homely as he could well be, 
clumsy and gawky in his appearance, clad in pioneer 
style, with legs and arms out of all proportion to his 



Il8 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

head and body, going through this ordeal of refine- 
ment ! Nat. Grigsby describes Abraham, at that time, 
thus : "He was long, wiry and strong ; while his big 
feet and hands, and the length of his legs and arms, 
were out of all proportion to his small trunk and head. 
His complexion was very swarthy, and his skin was 
shrivelled and yellow even then. He wore low shoes, 
buckskin breeches, linsey-woolsey shirt, and a cap 
made of the skin of an opossum or coon. The breeches 
clung close to his thighs and legs, but failed by a large 
space to reach the tops of his shoes. Twelve inches 
remained uncovered, and exposed that much of shin 
bone, sharp, blue, and narrow." It must have been a 
comical sight, when this overgrown and awkward boy 
was required to play the gentleman, and was put 
through a course of "manners" indispensable to pio- 
neers, as Crawford thought. It did him good, however, 
as we judge from the words of Mrs. Josiah Crawford, 
for whose husband Abraham subsequently worked. 
She said, " Abe was polite ; lifted his hat on meeting 
strangers ; and always removed it from his head on 
coming into the house." 

Three years after Abraham attended Crawford's 
school, he attended another, nearly five miles distant, 
taught by one Swaney. He continued but a short 
time at this school, since the great distance consumed 
too much of his time. But John Hoskins, who was a 
fellow-pupil, declares that " Abe took the lead, and was 
big in spellin'," when "we would choose up, and 
spell every Friday night." 

Here, Abraham's school-days ended ; and all his 
schooling amounted to less than one year. Neverthe- 



A NEW MOTHER AND SCHOOLS. 1 1 9 

less, according to David Turnham, he completely- 
drained his teachers. We have his word for it, that 
" Abe beat all his masters, and it was no use for him 
to try to learn any more from them." 

We may add, in closing this chapter, that about this 
time, Levi Hall, a relative of the Lincolns, removed from 
Kentucky with his family, and settled near them. 
Also John Hanks, cousin of the first Mrs. Lincoln, and 
son of Joseph Hanks of Elizabethtown, of whom Tom 
Lincoln learned the carpenter's trade, came to live with 
the latter. John had no education ; could neither read 
nor write ; but he was a temperate, upright, truthful 
man, without a particle of Abraham's wit, and none of 
his extreme awkwardness. He lived four years with 
Mr. Lincoln ; then returned to Kentucky ; whence he 
removed to Illinois, where we shall meet him again. 




CHAPTER IX. 

BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 

|HE greatest man that ever lived!" said 
Abraham, as he sat upon a log in the 
woods, conversing with David Turnham. 
" This country has a right to be proud of 
Washington." 

" That is your opinion ; but I guess the British 
won't say so," answered David. 

"And that is just because they were whipped by 
him ; and they don't want to own up." 

" How do you know so much about Washington, 
Abe?" 

" Because I have read about him, and I always 
heard that he made the red-coats run for life." 

" Who do you mean by the red-coats ? " 

" Why, the British, to be sure. They were called 
1 red-coats,' because they wore coats of that color. I 
expect that they looked splendidly, though they did n't 
feel very splendidly, I guess, after they got whipped." 

" Have you read the Life of Washington?" 

" Of course I have, a good while ago. I read Ram- 
say's Life of Washington, and that shows that he was 
the greatest man who ever lived." 



BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 121 

" Is that like the one Josiah Crawford has ?" 

" I did n't know that Mr. Crawford had a Life of 
Washington." 

" Well, he has ; for I heard him talking with father 
about it." 

" How long ago ? " 

'• Not more than two or three weeks ago." 

•' You don't know the name of the author ? There 
are lives of Washington written by different men." 

" I don't remember who wrote this. I did n't mind 
much about what they were saying." 

" I can find out," added Abraham ; and he did 
find out. He embraced the first opportunity to in- 
quire of a neighbor, and learned that it was Weems's 
Life of Washington that Mr. Crawford owned. 

" Can I borrow it ? " he inquired of his parents, for 
he was very anxious to read it. 

" Perhaps he won't like to lend it," answered his 
mother. 

" I shall find that out when I ask him," said Abra- 
ham. 

" And you should tell him that you will not take it 
unless he is perfectly willing to let you have it." 

"Then I may ask him, may I ? " 

" If you are very desirous to read it." 

" Well, I am, and I will go there to-night when I 
get through work." 

Abraham was elated with the idea of getting hold of 
this new work. He viewed the character of Wash- 
ington with admiration, and he would know what 
different biographers said of him. He was not a little 
impatient for his day's work to be done. He toiled as 



122 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

usual, however, with a good degree of interest in his 
work, until night, when he prepared himself to call on 
Mr. Crawford. 

The family gave him a cordial welcome, and Mrs. 
Crawford said : " I wonder what has brought you out 
to-night. I have n't seen you here for a long time." 

" Perhaps you won't be so glad to see me after you 
learn what I came for," replied Abraham. 

" And what did you come for, that makes you think 
so?" asked Mr. Crawford. 

" I came to borrow a book." 

" A book, hey! That is a good errand, I am sure." 

" But I did not know as you would be willing to 
lend it." 

" What book is it ? " asked Mr. Crawford. " I have 
no doubt that I can accommodate you." 

" It is the Life of Washington. I was told that you 
had it, and I want to read it." 

" I wish all the boys wanted to read it," said Mr. 
Crawford. " I will lend it to you, Abe, with great 
pleasure. I am glad to see that you like to read." 

" I will not take it unless you are perfectly willing 
to lend it," said Abraham. 

" If I did not want you should have it, I should tell 
you so. I am not one of those persons who are afraid 
to tell what they think. I am glad that I have the 
book to lend you." 

" I will take good care of it, and return it to you 
all safe," responded Abraham. This was just like him. 
So considerate a boy would not ask the loan of a book 
without some diffidence, and when it was borrowed, he 
would feel that great care must be used to preserve it. 



BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 1 23 

He valued the few books which he himself possessed 
so highly as to lead him to think that other people 
held their volumes in equal estimation. It was really 
an excellent trait of character that caused him to use 
so much discretion in borrowing books, for the bor- 
rowing of this single article has been the occasion of 
much trouble in neighborhoods. In consequence of 
thoughtlessness and less regard for the interests of 
others than their own, many persons have borrowed 
books and never returned them, or else returned them 
in a much worse condition than when they were re- 
ceived. Frequently books are lost in this way from 
Sabbath-school and other libraries. Borrowers do 
not return them. They think so little of their obli- 
gations, that the books are forgotten and lost. Book- 
borrowers are very apt to be negligent, so that when 
we see a lad so particular as Abraham was, it is worth 
while to take note of the fact. 

" It will take me some time to read so large a 
work," said he, as he took it from Mr. Crawford. 
" Perhaps you will want it before I get through with 
it." 

" Oh, no ; you are such a great reader that you will 
finish it in short metre. Keep it as long as you want 
it, and I shall be suited." 

" I thank you," Abraham replied, as he arose to 
leave. " Good night." 

"Good night," several voices responded. 

It was a very joyful evening to Abraham as he 
bore -that Life of Washington home, and sat down 
about the middle of the evening to read the first chap- 
ter therein. 



124 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Keep it nice," said his mother. " Remember that 
it is a borrowed book." 

"I will try" he replied. "Mr. Crawford was per- 
fectly willing to lend it, and I shall be none the less 
careful on that account." 

Those were pleasant hours of leisure that he de- 
voted to reading Weems's Life of Washington. Every 
evening, after his day's labor was completed, he read 
the work with absorbing interest, and at other times, 
when he could find a spare moment, it was in his hand. 
He had nearly completed it, when the following 
mishap caused him many unpleasant thoughts and 
feelings. 

A driving storm was raging, so that he could per- 
form little labor except what could be done under 
cover. Of course his book was in his hand much of 
the time, and the whole of the dreary evening, to a 
late hour, was his companion. On going to bed, he 
laid it down directly under a large crack between the 
logs, and the wind changing in the night, the rain was 
driven into the house, and the book was wet through. 
The first sight that met Abraham's eyes in the 
morning was the drenched book, and his feelings can 
be better imagined than described. 

" O dear ! " he exclaimed. " That book is spoiled ! " 
And he could scarcely restrain the tears that welled 
up to his eyes. 

" How did you happen to lay it there ? " asked his 
mother. 

" I never thought about its raining in there. 'But 
only look at it ! it is completely soaked ! " and he lifted 
it up carefully to show his mother. 



BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 1 25 

" Oh, I am so sorry ! it is ruined ! " she said. 

" I can dry it," answered Abraham, " but that will 
not leave it decent. See ! the cover will drop off, and 
there is no help for it. What will Mr. Crawford say ? 
I told him that I would keep it very carefully, and re- 
turn it to him uninjured." 

" Well, it is done, and can't be helped now," added 
his mother ; " and I have no doubt that you can fix it 
with Mr. Crawford." 

" I have no money to pay him for it, and I don't see 
how I can make it good to him. He ought to be paid 
for it." 

" Of course he had, and he may want you to do 
some work for him, which will be the same as money 
to him. You'd better take the book to him to-day 
and see what you can do." 

" I am almost ashamed to go. He will think that I 
am a careless fellow." 

" Never be ashamed to do right, my son." 

" I am not ashamed to do right. I was only say- 
ing how I felt. I told him that I would keep it 
nicely." 

"And so you meant to; but accidents will happen 
sometimes, even if we are careful." 

"He shall be paid for it somehow," continued Abra- 
ham. " I will see him today." 

The volume was exposed to the heat of the fire that 
day, and when Abraham was ready to go to Mr. Craw- 
ford's in the evening, it was dry enough for transpor- 
tation. The storm had passed away, and the stars were 
looking down from the skies, as he took the book, 
carefully wrapped in a cotton handkerchief, and pro- 



126 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

ceeded to Mr. Crawford's. His heart was heavy and 
sad, and he dreaded to open the subject to him. 

" Good evening, Abe ! Got through with the book 
so quick ? " said Mr. Crawford. 

" Good evening," responded Abraham, in his usual 
manly way. " I have brought the book back, although 
I have not finished it." 

" Keep it, then, keep it," replied Mr. Crawford, 
before the lad could tell his story. " I told you to keep 
it as long as you wanted it." 

" Perhaps you won't want I should keep it when you 
hear what has happened to it." And he proceeded to 
untie the handkerchief in which it was wrapped. 

" There," continued Abraham, exhibiting the book ; 
" it is ruined. I laid it down last night where the rain 
beat in and wet it through, and it is spoiled. I'm very 
sorry indeed, and want to pay you for it in some way." 

Josiah Crawford was a hard man by nature, and an 
excess of whiskey made him harder. He was not a 
relative of Andrew Crawford, the teacher, although he 
was like him in one particular — he had an ungovern- 
able temper. At sight of the ruined volume his 
countenance changed, and he snapped out in his wrath : 

" Carelessness ! Pretty mess for a borrowed book." 

Had he not been a good friend of Abraham, there is 
no telling what abuse he might have heaped upon the 
boy. As it was, with all his regard for Abraham as an 
uncommon youth, he poured out large vials of wrath 
upon him, the boy all the while declaring that he was 
willing to pay for it. 

" I've ruined the book, and I'll do any work you say 
to pay for it. Have you any work I can do ?" 



BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. \2J 

Crawford's wrath abated somewhat when he heard 
the word work. The idea of getting work out of the 
lad was tempting to him ; for he was an unscrupulous, 
avaricious, stingy man, and now was his time to take 
advantage of Abraham's generosity. 

" Yes, work enough," he growled, angry as a panther 
that prowled about the forest at night. 

"How much was the book worth ?" asked Abraham. 

"Mor'n I'll ever get," Crawford growled again. 

"I'll work to pay its full value, and keep it for my 
own, if you say so," continued Abraham. 

After further parleying, Crawford, seeing his oppor- 
tunity to make something out of Abraham, cooled 
down to ordinary heat, and proceeded to say: 

"I tell you what it is, Abe, I'm in great trouble about 
my corn. You see the whole of my corn has been 
stripped of the blades as high as the ear, and is now 
ready to have the tops cut off for winter fodder ; but 
my hands are full of other work, and how it is to be 
done is more than I can tell. Now, if you can help me 
out of this scrape, we can square the account about the 
book." 

" I'll do it," replied Abraham, with emphasis. " How 
much of it shall I cut?" 

" All of it, of course," answered Crawford, un- 
pleasantly ; "you can't expect to get such a book for 
nothing." 

Abraham was taken somewhat by surprise by this 
exorbitant demand ; nevertheless, he was equal to the 
occasion, and promptly responded : 

" Well, then, I'll cut the whole of it ; when shall I 
begin?" * 



128 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"To-morrow morning ; " and the exacting manner in 
which he thus proceeded awakened Abraham's con- 
tempt for him. Still he answered : 

"To-morrow morning it is, then ; I'll be on hand as 
early as you want to see me." 

Abraham hastened home and reported. His parents 
united with him in the opinion that it was one of Craw- 
ford's acts of extortion. Still, they were glad that their 
son could settle the affair in some way. 

Abraham undertook to redeem his pledge on the next 
day, and, bright and early, he was in Crawford's corn- 
field. There were several acres of the corn, and several 
days of very hard work would be required to finish the 
job. Abraham bent himself to the task with more than 
usual determination, and completed it in about three 
days, although ordinarily, a man would have needed 
nearly five days in which to perform the work. 

Abraham never forgot the extortion which Crawford 
practised upon him, and he always despised his over- 
reaching propensity. Still, he was glad to own another 
volume, especially one of so much value as Weems's 
Life of Washington. That Crawford forgot his own 
meanness, is quite evident from the fact, that, sub- 
sequently, he sought Abraham's services, and those of 
his sister to assist his wife. Both Abraham and Sarah 
were glad of the opportunity to earn an honest dollar, 
and accepted his proposition. They lived with Craw- 
ford several months during that year, and pleased the 
crabbed old fellow mightily. Abraham finished his log- 
house by " daubing it," that is, filling the interstices 
between the unhewn logs with clay, especially the loft 
in which he lodged. 



BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 1 29 

He split many rails for Crawford during that season, 
planted, sowed and harvested, receiving only twenty- 
five cents a day. If he lost only a few minutes from 
hard work, as he would on some days, his employer 
deducted it from his small wages, thereby exposing his 
contemptible spirit, though Abraham never protested. 

Abraham might not have remained at Crawford's 
during the whole season, but for the presence of his 
sister there, and his high respect for Mrs. Crawford, 
who was an excellent woman ; " nothing that her hus- 
band was, and everything that he was not." 

He found several books there which he had never 
seen before ; and these he read over and over at night. 
One of them 'was the Kentucky Preceptor, which he 
pored over with unusual interest, because it contained 
dialogues and declamations. Many of these he com- 
mitted to memory ; indeed, when his time was up at 
Crawford's, he had no need to carry away the books, 
for the contents of them were in his head. Although 
his employer paid him little more than half of what the 
boy ought to have had, it proved to be a good place for 
him on account of the books that he used for his own 
personal improvement. 

Josiah Crawford was as homely as he was ill-tempered. 
The lids of his eyes were red as a lobster's claw, and his 
nose was considerably longer than it should have been 
for symmetry and beauty ; and what was worse yet, a 
bad habit had pimpled and reddened the end of it as if 
purposely to make him ugly-looking. Abraham cele- 
brated the characteristics of Crawford's nose in verse, 
sometime after he ceased laboring for him, perhaps the 
following winter. Afterwards when he was indulging 



130 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

his gift for " Chronicles," he embalmed the memory of 
it in that style of composition. These literary efforts 
spread both the fame of Crawford's nose and the talents 
of the writer. How widely the subject-matter of his 
"verse" and "chronicles" were discussed and enjoyed, 
is learned from the fact that one of his biographers 
says, that the fame of Crawford's nose spread " as wide 
as to the Wabash and the Ohio." We cite the incident 
only to show that Abraham wielded a facile pen at that 
early day, and that the people regarded him as a mar- 
vellous boy. 

Mrs. Josiah Crawford records a curious incident con- 
cerning Abraham. During the season he worked for 
her husband, he frequently lingered after dinner to 
have a frolic with the girls in the kitchen. One day 
he became unusually boisterous, when Mrs. Crawford 
reproved him for " fooling," and asked, " What do you 
think will ever become of you?" Abraham replied 
promptly, " be President of the United States." Nor was 
this the only occasion of his making a similar remark. 
He often used it in his boyhood and youth. As his 
miserable surroundings absolutely precluded any such 
idea, and he was wont to joke about his homeliness, 
poverty and future promise, some of his friends suppose 
that he made the remark in a vein of pleasantry. But 
whether so or not, the fact is worthy of record. 

Long before this time, Mr. Lincoln had discontinued 
the use of his domestic grist-mill, for Hoffman built a 
mill to run by water, on Anderson's Creek, twelve 
miles away. To this mill Abraham and David Turn- 
ham carried their grists, until Gordon built a horse- 
mill within a few miles of Lincoln's cabin. Then their 






BORROWING, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 13 I 

patronage was transferred to Gordon's. To the latter 
place Abraham carried a grist one day, and safely tied 
the "old mare" while waiting for the grinding. When 
the time came to start for home, he untied the mare, 
jumped on, and started the animal so suddenly with a 
" clucjt," and stroke of a stick, that she kicked furiously, 
and knocked him head over heels, from the cart to the 
ground. He was picked up in a state of insensibility, 
the bystanders fearing that life was extinct. For sev- 
eral minutes he remained insensible, and when con- 
sciousness returned, he finished the "cluck," that was 
only half uttered when the ugly beast knocked him 
over. Many years afterward, he had discussions with 
his law partner at Springfield, 111., Mr. Herndon, as to 
the psychological explanation of this remarkable phe- 
nomenon. One person remarked that it "was an 
illustration of Abe's perseverance — he always accom- 
plished what he undertook." 

The next chapter will disclose the manner in which 
Abraham worked and studied, growing in knowledge 
and popularity daily. 




CHAPTER X. 

WORKING AND WINNING. 

|HE reader should understand the society 
in which Abraham mixed, in order to ap- 
preciate fully the elements of character 
which enabled him to work and win from 
fifteen to eighteen years of age. Mrs. Crawford, whom 
we have already quoted, in a letter to Mr. Herndon, 
furnishes rather a vivid picture of the social state at 
that time- She says : — 

" You wish me to tell you how the people used to 
go to meeting, — how far they went. At that time we 
thought it nothing to go eight or ten miles. The old 
ladies did not stop for the want of a shawl, or cloak, or 
riding-dress, or two horses, in the winter time ; but 
they would put on their husband's old overcoats, and 
wrap up their little ones, and take one or two of them 
up on their beasts, and their husbands would walk, 
and they would go to church, and stay in the neighbor- 
hood until the next day, and then go home. The old 
men would start out of their fields from their work, or 
out of the woods from hunting, with their guns on 
their shoulders, and go to church. Some of them 
dressed in deerskin pants and moccasins, hunting- 



WORKING AND WINNING. 133 

shirts with a rope or leather strap around them. They 
would come in laughing, shake hands all around, sit 
down and talk about their game they had killed, or 
some other work they had done, and smoke their pipes 
together with the old ladies. If in warm weather, they 
would kindle up a little fire out in the meeting-house 
yard, to light their pipes. If in the winter-time, they 
would hold church in some of the neighbors' houses. 
At such times they were always treated with the utmost 
kindness ; a bottle of whiskey, a pitcher of water, sugar 
and a glass, were set out, or a basket of apples, or 
turnips, or some pies and cakes. Apples were scarce 
at that time. Sometimes potatoes were used as a 
treat. The first treat I ever received in old Mr. Lin- 
coln's house (that was our President's father's house), 
was a plate of potatoes, washed and pared very nicely, 
and handed round. It was something new to me, for 
I had never seen a raw potato eaten before. I looked 
to see how they made use of them. Each took off a 
potato, and ate it like an apple. Thus they spent the 
time till preaching commenced ; then they would all 
take their seats ; the preacher would take his stand, 
draw off his coat, open his shirt-collar, commence ser- 
vice by singing and prayer ; take his text and preach till 
the sweat would roll off in great drops. Shaking hands 
and singing ended the service. The people seemed to 
enjoy religious service more in those days than they 
do now. They were glad to see each other, and en- 
joyed themselves better than they do now." 

The population had increased very much at the 
period of which Mrs. Crawford speaks, and log meet- 
ing-houses were found here and there, at least for sum- 



134 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

mer use. Some of them were too open and cold for 
winter use. 

The people were very superstitious, as unlettered 
people usually are. Mr. Lamon has recorded their 
superstitious notions in a single paragraph, thus : — 

" They firmly believed in witches and all kinds of 
witch-doings. They sent for wizards to cure sick 
cattle. They shot the image of the witch with a 
silver ball, to break the spell she was supposed to have 
laid on a human being. If a dog ran directly across a 
man's path whilst he was hunting, it was terrible 
1 luck,' unless he instantly hooked his two little 
fingers together, and pulled with all his might, until 
the dog was out of sight. There were wizards who 
took charmed sticks in their hands, and made them 
point to springs of water and all kinds of treasure be- 
neath the earth's surface. There were 'faith doctors' 
who cured diseases by performing mysterious cere, 
monies and muttering cabalistic words. If a bird 
alighted in a window, one of the family would speedily 
die. If a horse breathed on a child, the child would 
have the whooping-cough. Every thing must be done 
at certain 'times and seasons.' They must make 
fence 'in the light of the moon,' otherwise the fence 
would sink. Potatoes and other roots were to be 
planted ' in the dark of the moon,' but trees and 
plants which bare their fruits above ground must be 
' put out in the light of the moon.' The moon exerted 
a fearful influence, either kindly or malignant, as the 
good old rules were observed or not. It was even re- 
quired to make soap ' in the light of the moon,' and, 
moreover, it must be stirred only one way, and by one 



WORKING AND WINNING. 135 

person. Nothing of importance was to be begun on 
Friday. All enterprises inaugurated on that day went 
fatally amiss." 

Abraham Lincoln was reared from infancy to man- 
hood among these people. Their manners, customs, 
habits, and opinions, were familiar to him, and he knew 
no others by which to judge of them by contrast. The 
children of those people were his daily companions. 
He worked for and with their parents, heard their 
conversation* witnessed their want and ignorance, and 
nowhere found those intellectual conditions which could 
satisfy a mind like his. It is not strange that some of 
the peculiarities of the people, with whom he was reared, 
became his, and clung to him through life. 

The incidents of this chapter will serve to magnify 
the mental and moral qualities of Abraham, which 
enabled him to improve and rise higher and higher 
even with such unfavorable surroundings. 

James Taylor, who lived at the mouth of Anderson's 
Creek, was anxious to secure Abraham's services. 

" I will give him six dollars a month and his board," 
said Mr. Taylor to Mr. Lincoln ; "and that is good pay 
for a boy sixteen years old." 

" Fair pay," responded Mr. Lincoln. " You want him 
to run your ferry-boat?" Mr. Taylor ran a ferry-boat 
across both the Ohio and Anderson's Creek. 

"Yes, and other jobs that I want done; some farm- 
work ; to take care of the horses, and chore about," was 
Mr. Taylor's reply. 

" Abe can do as well by you in such work as a man 
grown, though I don't expect to get a man's wages for 
him," added Mr. Lincoln. 



136 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"That is the reason I want him," said Mr. Taylor. 
" I would n't give many boys that price anyhow ; but I 
know that Abe is reliable, and he knows which side his 
bread is buttered." 

" For how many months will you pay him six dollars 
a month?" 

"For nine months certainly, and perhaps longer." 

"That's satisfactory ; perhaps I won't want he should 
stay any longer." 

" Well," continued Mr. Taylor, "do I understand that 
he may go? I want him at once." 

" He may go," answered Mr. Lincoln ; " and he may 
begin at once if you say so." 

"I say so ; and shall expect to see him to-morrow," 
added Mr. Taylor, as he turned away and drove off. 

Abraham was duly installed ferryman by his employer, 
though he was given to understand that, at times, he 
would be expected to act as farmer, hostler, and house- 
servant. He particularly enjoyed being ferryman, as 
it was new business for him ; and, like most boys, he 
loved boating. He was very large of his age and very 
strong, and could therefore handle a boat as easily and 
effectively as a man. He was growing rapidly still, 
and, at seventeen years of age, he was six feet and four 
inches high — both the tallest and strongest person in 
Spencer County. 

Abraham was expected to be the first one up in the 
house in the morning, " build the fire," " put on the 
water in the kitchen," and " get things prepared for 
cooking," before Mrs. Taylor put in her appearance. 
Other things, such as bringing wood and water, he 
attended to with scrupulous exactness. It was not 



. 

ic^diu Him iw tne most .. ~- . j 

knew. We doubt if she had ever found a man or boy, 
not excepting her own husband and son, who was so 
"wonderful" as to "chore about" as Abraham did, 
without protesting. He was in the truest sense a 
" man-of -all-work " at Taylor's, doing whatsoever his 
hands found to do with all his might. 

Here Abraham found a History of the United 
States, and two or three other volumes, that en- 
grossed his attention at night. He slept up stairs 
with Green Taylor, son of his employer, a young man 
older than himself, without any of his brightness or 
ambition ; and there he often extended his reading 
far into the night, much to the annoyance of his bed- 
fellow. 

" Blow out that light and come to bed, Abe," he 
exclaimed more than once. " I'll be bound if you shall 
spoil my sleep for a book." 

" Let me read you a page or two," Abraham pro- 
vokingly, though jocosely, answered. " A snooze is of 
no account in comparison with the History of the 
United States." And he continued to read until 
interrupted by another appeal out of the bedclothes. 

" Abe, I say, if you don't come to bed, I'll get up 
and blow your light out." 

" Will ? Well ; I would if I was in your place. Per- 
haps you can blow it out without getting up. Try it ; 
there is a good amount of blow in you." 

The fretted sleeper could get no satisfaction in 
appealing to the midnight reader. A good-natured 
humorous reply was all Abraham would yield to him. 



I38 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



Once Green Taylor struck the " hired boy," in an angry 
mood, but Abraham did not strike back again. He 
was indignant enough to do it ; but, being a greater 
warrior than he who taketh a city, he controlled his 
own spirit, and continued to read on. Years after- 
wards Green Taylor lived to rehearse his experience 
with Abraham, and tell what a marvellous boy he was. 

"Why, he would work hard all day, read till mid- 
night, and then get up before anybody in the morning. 
I never saw such a fellow. He was like Abe Lincoln 
and nobody else." Referring to his act of striking 
him, he said, " Abe was mad, but he didn't thrash 
me." The language implies that Abraham could 
easily have avenged himself by whipping the offender, 
but that he forbore — his better judgment and nature 
controlling instead of passion. 

At Taylor's, Abraham tried his hand at hog-killing 
for the first time. He had assisted many times in the 
slaughtering of hogs, but never before had played the 
part of butcher. 

"You can try it, Abe," said Mr. Taylor, who saw 
that the boy could do anything he would undertake. 
" What do you say ? " 

" Just as you say," answered Abraham ; " if you'll 
risk the hogs I'll risk myself." Mr. Taylor, laughing 
at this reply, responded : — 

" I'll take the risk ; so you may go ahead." 

In this way Abraham became a butcher, and soon 
grew so expert in the rough business that farmers em- 
ployed him. He slaughtered hogs for John Dathan, 
Stephen Mc Daniels, John Woods, and others ; and 
Mr. Taylor received thirty-one cents a day for the 



WORKING AND WINNING. 1 39 

boy's services in this line. He did the business well, 
and for that reason, his labors were demanded for hog- 
killing. 

Ferryman, farmer, hostler, house-servant, butcher — 
all for one man, and all well done. Mr. Taylor unwit- 
tingly paid him a high compliment, when he remarked 
to a neighbor, " Abe will do one thing about as well as 
another." Perhaps he did not know the reason, which 
was, plainly, that thoroughness was a rule with him. 
Whatever he did, he did as well as he eould. 

At the expiration of nine months, Abraham returned 
home. His sister married Aaron Grigsby soon after 
his return, and the event was celebrated in pioneer 
style, in Lincoln's cabin. Abraham composed for the 
occasion, what he entitled "Adam and Eve's Wedding 
Song," two verses of which were, — 

"The Lord was not willing 

That man should be alone, 
But caused a sleep upon him, 

And took from him a bone. 

The woman was not taken 

From Adam's feet we see ; 
So he must not abuse her, 

The meaning seems to be." 

This song was sung at the wedding with much eclat. 
We may add, in this connection, that Abraham had 
become an almost. indispensable appendage to festive 
occasions in all that region. He was the only person 
who could furnish any literary production for the 
amusement of either the old or young. He was sur- 
charged with wit and humor, also, and it was only 



140 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

necessary to touch him, on such occasions, and he 
emitted both like electric sparks. He could recite 
pages of poetry and prose, and somehow he could adapt 
them to any exigency that might arise. In short, his 
talents and unusual acquisitions made him a favorite in 
all social gatherings. 

One year after Sarah Lincoln was married, she died, 
and was laid beside her mother on the knoll. This was 
a great sorrow to Abraham, who loved his sister ten- 
derly ; and, for a time, bis spirits wer.e considerably 
depressed. 

Some time after he served Taylor, he went to live 
with the storekeeper Jones, at Gentryville, only one 
mile and a half from his home. He was now a giant 
in stature — six feet and four inches tall — almost too 
tall to have about in log-cabins. Jones was an 
admirer of Abraham, and admitted him at once to his 
confidence. 

" You can cut up pork, can't you, Abe ? " Jones asked. 

" Yes ; I can do anything about pork, from killing 
and dressing to eating it." Jones bought dressed hogs, 
exchanging goods for them ; also venison hams, corn, 
wheat, and corn-skins. Corn was ten cents a bushel, 
and wheat twenty-five cents. 

" How about the store, Abe ? Can you keep store ? " 

" I've never tried it," answered Abraham. "I'm so 
stylish and graceful that I might attract customers 
possibly." He was always jocose over his awkward 
and homely bearing, and so he replied to Jones in this 
facetious way. 

"Well, I'll give you a chance to display your attrac- 
tions," continued Jones. " There's a great variety of 



WORKING AND WINNING. 141 

work to be done in such a place as this — teaming, 
cutting up and curing pork, packing and unpacking 
goods, measuring corn and wheat, drawing molasses 
and whiskey, and tending store generally." 

Into this work Abraham was inducted at once, a new 
field of labor to him in some respects. He drove team, 
packed and unpacked goods, drew liquids in the cellar 
when required, exhibited and sold crockery, and other 
heavy goods, to customers. Nor did he fail to render 
good service to Mrs. Jones, who soon discovered how 
" handy" he was about the house. 

Mr. Jones possessed several books which Abraham 
had not read, among them the Life of Franklin. He, 
also, took a newspaper which Abraham read from 
beginning to end. He was quite a politician, too, a 
Jackson democrat, and he often discussed political 
questions with Abraham. In fact, he made a Jackson 
democrat of Abraham, and the latter continued in that 
faith, unshaken, until the Life of Henry Clay came into 
his hands, a few years later. Reading that life of the 
famous " Harry of the West," rather shook his confi- 
dence in Jackson's political creed. He was particularly 
taken with the discouraging surroundings of Clay in 
his boyhood and youth, when he was known as the 
" mill-boy of the slashes," because those surroundings 
were so much like those of his own boyhood. Some 
of his friends believe that reading the Life of Clay 
turned his thoughts or aims, perhaps unconsciously to 
himself, in the direction of a public career. It is cer- 
tain that he became a "Clay Whig," and continued so 
until the question of liberty engaged his heart and soul 
in Illinois. 



142 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

After Abraham ceased to serve Mr. Jones, he con- 
tinued to visit his grocery often, in the evening, in 
company with Dennis Hanks and other companions. 
Here politics were discussed, stories told, jokes cracked, 
and general good friendship established. Abraham was 
the star of the group, because he was full of wit, an 
expert story-teller, and the only one of the number who 
could recite prose and poetry, and write them too. 

One night, when he was returning from the grocery 
quite late, in company with David Turnham and others, 
a man was discovered lying beside a mud-puddle. 

"Hallo!" exclaimed David, "what's this, Abe?" 
stopping, and pulling the unknown man over. 

" Dead or drunk," remarked Abraham, at the same 
time proceeding to shake up the man. " Who is it ?" 

" More'n I know ; nobody that I ever saw before," 
David answered. " Shake him up more and see 
whether there's any life in him." And they shook 
him thoroughly to arouse him, but in vain. 

" Plenty of rum in him if there is no life," remarked 
Abraham, after satisfying himself that the man was 
dead drunk. " But his case must be attended to." 

"You may attend to him if you want to, but I 
sha'n't," said Nat Grigsby. " Come, let's go home." 

" So I say," added David ; " it's too cold to fuss 
about here. If the fellow likes such a bed he may 
sleep it out for all me." 

" He'll freeze to death before morning if we leave 
him here," responded Abraham. 

"That's about all he's good for," chimed in Nat. 
By this time they had discovered that the man was a 
miserable drunkard who lived some miles away. " Come 



WORKING AND WINNING. 143 

on, I'm going home, whether the old fellow freezes or 
not." And Nat started on. 

" Well, I sha'n't go home until I make out what is 
going to become of this chap," said Abraham. " It 
would be inhuman to leave him to freeze here." 

" Perhaps it would, and perhaps it wouldn't," replied 
David. " Nobody is any better for his living, and some 
folks are worse. He's a good-for-nothing fellow any 
way." 

" That's no reason why we should let him die here 
like a dog or hog," retorted Abraham with some spirit. 
" Come, Dave, let that go, and we'll take him over to 
Dennis' cabin." At this time Dennis Hanks was mar- 
ried and lived in a cabin a half mile away. 

" I think I see myself tugging the miserable wretch 
a half mile at this time of night," retorted David. 
" You may make a fool of yourself over him if you 
want to, but I am going home." And David started 
for home, hearing, as he hurried away, Abraham say- 
ing, — "Go, then, you hard-hearted fellow." 

Abraham was not more than a minute in determin- 
ing what to do. He put his long strong arms around 
the drunken man, raised him up, flung him over his 
shoulder as he would a bag of corn, and started for 
Dennis Hanks' cabin, where he safely deposited him. 

" Look here, Dennis, I've brought you company," 
said Abraham, as he laid down his burden. " More of 
a job to carry him than a log." 

" Where did you find that fellow, Abe ? " inquired 
Dennis, getting out of bed. 

" In the road, where he would have died before 
morning, if I'd left him there." 



144 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" I know him of old, not much account any way," 
added Dennis. 

"Account enough to fix up a little," retorted Abra- 
ham. " We ought to be human beings so long as we 
pretend to be." 

"Go ahead, then," said Dennis, acquiescing; "see 
how you come out." And he proceeded to assist 
Abraham in his merciful work. They built a fire, 
warmed him, and Abraham rubbed him until con- 
sciousness was restored. In fact, he remained all 
night with the intemperate man, and left him in the 
morning well satisfied with the part he had played as 
"good Samaritan." Afterwards, the wretched man 
said to John Hanks, " It was mighty clever in Abe to 
take me to a warm fire that cold night. Abe's strength 
and kindness saved my life." 




CHAPTER XI. 

UPWARD AND ONWARD. 

HE brief remarks made about Abraham at 
this time show his standing. 

"He is always ready to do everything for 
everybody," remarked his mother. 

" He is good-natured as the days are long," said 
Dennis Hanks. 

"Always reading when he is not working," said 
Josiah Crawford. 

" More fun in him than there is in all the rest of us 
put. together," remarked David Turnham. 

Such remarks as these were common concerning 
Abraham Lincoln from the time he was fourteen years 
of age. John Hanks, who went to live with the Lincolns, 
as we have said, when Abraham was fourteen, says : — 

" When Abe and I returned to the house from work, he 
would go to the cupboard, snatch a piece of corn-bread, 
take down a book, sit down on a chair, cross his legs 
as high as his head, and read. He and I worked bare- 
footed, grubbed it, ploughed, mowed, and cradled to- 
gether; ploughed corn, gathered it, and shucked corn. 
Abraham read constantly when he had an opportu- 
nity." 



146 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Mr. Lamon says : " Abe loved to lie under a shade- 
tree, or up in the loft of the cabin, and read, cipher, 
and scribble. At night, he sat by the chimney "jamb," 
and ciphered, by the light of the fire, on the wooden 
fire-shovel. When the shovel was fairly covered, he 
would shave it off with Tom Lincoln's drawing-knife, 
and begin again. In the day time, he used boards for 
the same purpose, out of doors, and went through the 
shaving process everlastingly." 

His mother says : " Abe read every book he could lay 
his hands on ; and when he came across a passage that 
struck him, he would write it down on boards if he had 
no paper, and keep it there until he did get paper. 
Then he would re-write it, look at it, and repeat it. 
He had a copy-book, a kind of scrap-book, in which he 
put down all things, and thus preserved them." 

There is no record of how and where he obtained the 
scrap-book. The idea was entirely original with him, 
since he had never heard of any such device in his 
part of the country. There is no question that he 
possessed a scrap-book, and that it became an impor- 
tant agent in making him a scholar and statesman. 
He copied into it chiefly from the books he borrowed, 
thinking he would not have the opportunity to see 
them again. Books that he owned, as well as those 
belonging to his parents, he marked, that he might 
refer to striking passages at his leisure. Also, he 
frequently wrote brief compositions in that scrap- 
book, improving his talent for the art thereby. As an 
invention, at that time, the scrap-book was worthy of 
his genius, and, as a source of mental improvement, 
its value was never over-estimated. 



J8PH 1 / Pv3T 




The Pioneer Boy, 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 1 47 

One of the finest and most touching tributes ever 
paid to his memory was spoken by his mother to Mr. 
Herndon, and we quote it here because it had reference 
to his early life. She said : — 

" Abe was a poor boy, and I can say what scarcely 
one woman — a mother — can say, in a thousand. 
Abe never gave me a cross word or look, and never 
refused, in fact or appearance, to do any thing I re- 
quested him. I never gave him a cross word in all 
my life. . . . His mind and my mind — what little 
I had — seemed to run together. . . . He was 
here after he was elected President." Here she 
stopped, unable to proceed any further, and after her 
grateful emotions had spent themselves in tears, she 
proceeded : " He was dutiful to me always. I think 
he loved me truly. I had a son, John, who was raised 
with Abe. Both were good boys ; but I must say, 
both being now dead, that Abe was the best boy I 
ever saw, or ever expect to see. I wish I had died 
when my husband died. I did not want Abe to run 
for President ; did not want him elected ; was afraid 
somehow, — felt it in my heart ; and when he came 
down to see me, after he was elected President, I felt 
that something would befall him, and that I should see 
him no more." 

Mr. Lamon relates that, when this interview closed, 
and Mr. Herndon was about to retire, Mrs. Lincoln 
took one of his hands in both of hers, and ringing it, 
with the tears streaming down her cheeks, as if loath 
to separate from one who knew her "Abe" so 
intimately, said : " Good-by, my good son's friend. 
Farewell." 



148 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Abraham tried his father often by his persistent 
efforts to gain time to read and study, and by his 
disposition to turn night into day, that he might pore 
over some engrossing book, or compose a " poem " or 
" chronicle " upon some passing event, pleasant or 
otherwise. He was more tried, however, by Abraham's 
"preaching about" and "making "political speeches" 
on stumps, than anything ; for this interfered with 
business. His step-sister, Matilda Johnson, says he 
was remarkable for preaching and speech-making. On 
Monday mornings, after he had listened to a sermon, 
he would mount a stump, and deliver the sermon, 
which his memory retained with wonderful accuracy. 
In the field, he often amused his working companions 
with a speech upon some subject that was uppermost ; 
and, when he began to orate, there was an end of labor. 
All hands gathered about him in admiration, and 
cheered him on. Thomas Lincoln thought Abraham 
was carrying the matter too far. But he said nothing, 
especially authoritative, until the community was vis- 
ited by a preacher of singular eccentricities. He 
bellowed like a bull of Bashan in the pulpit, a fearful 
nasal twang accompanying his cracked voice ; and he 
pounded the desk in his excitement, as if determined 
to reduce it to kindling wood. His performance was 
fun for the young people ; and Abraham was especially 
amused. His gift of imitation enabled him to repro- 
duce the sermon, with its nasal twang and other oddi- 
ties, so that the eccentricities of the preacher were 
reproduced and re-repeated, over and over, on the 
stumps of the field, and at evening gatherings. When 
Abraham began to preach that sermon, in cabin or 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 149 

field, his audience could attend to nothing else until 
the discourse was finished. The exercise of laughing 
over it was well-nigh as exhaustive and violent as that 
of chopping. Even the old people, who thought it was 
not quite right to make so much merriment over a 
sermon, could not help laughing when Abraham be- 
came the eccentric pulpit orator. But his father felt 
obliged to interfere with this habit of public speaking. 
It became too much of an interruption to necessary 
work. 

" You must stop it, Abe. I won't have it. You'll 
get to liking fun more than work ; guess you do now. 
I've put up with it long enough, — shan't any longer. 
Don't let me have to speak to you about it again." So 
Mr. Lincoln interrupted Abraham's practice of stump- 
speaking, in his irritation manifesting considerable 
feeling on the subject. 

Yet there is no doubt that Mr. Lincoln was proud 
of the ability of his son, and, at heart, enjoyed his pre- 
cocity. In his ignorance, he might have feared that 
his habit of speech-making would make him lazy or 
shiftless. Whether he did or not, Abraham evidently 
laid the foundation of his future greatness as an orator 
and debater in those remarkable days of his youth. 
A better practice to discipline him for public service 
could not have engaged his attention. The pioneer 
boy was unconsciously schooling himself for the highest 
position in the land. 

Abraham worked often for William Wood, who lived 
one mile and a half away. Mr. Lincoln worked there, 
also, as a carpenter, whenever labor in his line was 
demanded. Abraham loved to work for Mr. Wood, for 



150 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he took two papers, which the boy could read through 
and through. One of them was a temperance paper, 
and its contents interested him more even than the 
political paper. 

"I did not know that a paper like this was ever 
printed," he said to Mr. Wood, who was one of the 
most intelligent and well posted men of Spencer 
County. "It's true, every word of it." 

"Of course it is," replied Mr. Wood. "Rum is 
well enough in its place, but there's no reason in men 
making such beasts of themselves as many do about 
here." 

" I shouldn't care if the whole of it was at the bottom 
of the Ohio River, where most of my father's whiskey 
went," continued Abraham. " It does a great sight 
more evil than good any day." 

" Good ! It would puzzle most any one to tell what 
good whiskey does," responded Mr. Wood. "The evil 
it does is known to everybody ; we can see that every- 
where. It adds very much to the hardships of life in 
this part of the country." 

Abraham became so enthusiastic over the tem- 
perance paper and the cause which it represented, 
that he wrote a long composition on the subject of 
" Temperance," and submitted it to Mr. Wood's ex- 
amination. 

"Did you write all this yourself, Abe?" remarked 
Mr. Wood, before reading it, but noticing its length. 

" Every word of it ; and I want you to read it over, 
and tell me what you think about it." 

"I will read it to-night without fail," and Mr. Wood 
did read it. His opinion of it is learned from the fact, 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 151 

that he remarked to a Baptist minister who called at 
his house : — 

" I have here a composition on Temperance, written 
by Abe Lincoln, and I think it is a wonderful produc- 
tion for such a boy to write. I want you should read 
it, and see if you do not agree with me." 

" I should be glad to read it, here and now," replied 
the minister. " I'm glad that Abe is writing on that 
subject." And he applied himself to reading the com- 
position at once. 

" I agree with you entirely," said the minister, com- 
pleting the reading ; " it is a remarkable production 
for such a boy." 

" I would like to see it printed in this temperance 
paper," continued Mr. Wood, holding the paper up. 

" It is worthy of a place in it," added the minister. 

"They publish articles that are not half as good," 
responded Mr. Wood. " You can get this composition 
to the editor ; it is right in your way." 

". Yes, I can take it there, and should be glad to 
do it." 

" Well, you take it, and I'll make it right with Abe." 

" He won't have any objection, if he is like most 
boys," remarked the minister. " He'll be a little proud 
to appear in print." 

The minister took the article along with him, and, 
subsequently, it appeared in the columns of the paper. 
Mr. Wood read it over again in print, and remarked : 
"It excels anything there is in the paper." Abra- 
ham was both gratified and encouraged by the publi- 
cation of his article. The paper was lent to the 
families in the neighborhood, after they heard that 



152 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Abraham was a writer for its columns, and the univer- 
sal verdict was, "a remarkable composition for a boy." 

"Can't you write on politics, Abe ? " said Mr. Wood 
to him, one day. 

" Yes, sir ; I have written some pieces on that 
subject." 

" Well, I mean an article to be printed in some 
political paper." 

" I can try," continued Abraham, elated with the 
idea of writing for a political paper. "What shall I 
write about?" 

Mr. Wood made some suggestions about the subject ; 
and, in the course of a week, Abraham brought him 
the article. Mr. Wood remembers enough of it to 
furnish the drift of the composition : — 

"That the American Government is the best form of 
government for an intelligent people ; that it ought to 
be sound, and preserved forever ; that general educa- 
tion should be fostered and carried all over the country ; 
that the Constitution should be saved, the Union per- 
petuated, and the laws revered, respected, and en- 
forced." 

Mr. Wood was even more gratified and surprised on 
reading this article than he was on reading the other. 
We think that the composition is more remarkable now 
than it was then, on account of subsequent events. 
For it surely contained the gist of Abraham Lincoln's 
inaugural address when he became President. On that 
occasion he said : — 

" I hold, that, in the contemplation of universal law 
and of the Constitution, the union of these States is 
perpetual. Perpetuity is implied, if not expressed, in 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 1 53 



the fundamental law of all national governments. 
Continue to execute all the express provisions of our 
national Constitution, and the Union will endure for- 
ever. ... I consider that in view of the Constitution 
and the laws, the Union is unbroken ; and to the extent 
of my ability, I shall take care, as the Constitution 
itself expressly enjoins upon me, that the laws of the 
Union shall be faithfully executed." 

How wonderful that the pioneer boy who wrote the 
aforesaid article for a political paper should become 
President of the United States thirty-three years there- 
after, and reiterate in his inaugural address the same 
sentiments, when the enemies of the country were seek- 
ing to overthrow the Constitution, abrogate its laws, 
and sever the Union ! Truly 

" There's a divinity that shapes our ends, 
Rough-hew them how we will." 

A lawyer, by the name of Pritchard, was passing by 
Mr. Wood's house, when the political article in question 
was in his hands. Mr. Wood called him in, remarking, 

" I want you should read an article I have here, and 
see what you think of it." He did not disclose who 
was the author of it. 

"Your own?" inquired Pritchard. 

"That's no matter ; read it." 

" I will, if that is your wish ; " and Pritchard sat down 
to its perusal. As he read the last sentence, he re- 
marked, in a very enthusiastic way, — 

" It can't be beat. Is it yours ? " 

" No ; it is not mine. Tom Lincoln's son, Abe, 
wrote it, and I think it is wonderful for a boy." 



154 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" More than that," added Pritchard, still more in- 
terested when he learned that a boy wrote it. " Let 
me have it to publish in our paper," meaning the paper 
of his section. 

" That's what it was written for, — to be published in 
some political paper," answered Mr. Wood. " An 
article of Abe's was published in my temperance paper 
not long ago, and it was the best thing it had. Abe is 
a great temperance boy." 

The last remark makes it necessary to interject a 
paragraph here. We have undoubted testimony that 
Abraham was the only person in that region, at 
that time, who refused on all occasions to partake of 
intoxicating liquors. His opposition to the practice 
was so well known, that, at house-raisings, log-rollings, 
huskings, and parties, it was not expected that he would 
touch anything which would intoxicate. It was his 
decided stand against intoxicants that caused his mother 
to say, " I think Abe carries his temperance notions to 
extremes." 

It was arranged that Pritchard should take the article 
to the editor of a political paper for publication ; and, 
in due time, it appeared, much to the satisfaction of 
Mr. Wood, the joy of Abraham, and the pride of the 
neighborhood. Abraham wrote other articles which he 
submitted to the examination of Mr. Wood ; and the 
exercise of writing composition became to him an 
excellent discipline, and did much to help him upward 
and onward. 

A Mr. Richardson, who lived in the vicinity at that 
time, says : 

"Abe was the best penman in the neighborhood. 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 155 

One day, while he was on a visit to my mother's, I asked 
him to write some original copies for me. He very 
willingly consented. He wrote several of them, but one 
of them I have never forgotten, although a boy at the 
time. It was this : — 

' Good boys, who to their books apply, 
Will all be great men by and by.' " 

Abraham came into the possession of a copy-book 
(not the scrap-book spoken of) in which he wrote orig- 
inal copies. Here is one : — 

" Abraham Lincoln, his hand and pen ; 
He will be good, but God knows when." 

In the same book he wrote the following : — 

" Time ! what an empty vapor 'tis ! 

And days, how swift they are ! 
Swift as an Indian arrow, 

Fly on like a shooting-star, 
The present moment just is here, 

Then slides away in haste, 
That we can never say they're ours, 

But only say they're past." 

Many such " pieces," in poetry and prose, he wrote, 
exhibiting thought, genius, noble aspirations, and 
marked talents. 

We have intimated that Abraham's love of books 
prevented his becoming a hunter. He could not spare 
the time. If he were not at work, he had a book in 
his hand. Other boys became hunters. It was neces- 
sary for them to be in order to procure food and a 
livelihood. Dennis Hanks says, " When we had spare 



156 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

time we picked up the rifle, and brought in a fine deer 
or turkey ; and in the winter-time we went coon-hunt- 
ing, for coon-skins were considered legal tender, and 
deerskins and hams." The woods were full of rabbits, 
partridges, squirrels, and other game, but these were 
not shot much for food. Deer and turkeys were more 
desirable for the larder. The smaller game mentioned 
was so plenty, that the settlers resorted to various 
devices to destroy them. They devastated gardens and 
grain-fields, and the pioneers made war upon them as a 
nuisance. 

Bears, wild-cats, and panthers, also, were quite numer- 
ous, and these were shot in self-defence. The scream 
of the latter often filled the forest with terror at night, 
in Abraham's early life. Yet, our hero never did much 
at hunting. A book, instead of a gun, captivated his 
heart, and he read and studied when other boys hunted 
and had rare sport. We do not mean that he never 
engaged in this pastime ; for he did occasionally accom- 
pany companions upon hunting excursions. But, com- 
pared with the average boy of the county, he was not a 
hunter. 

Abraham enjoyed certain "plays" and games more 
than he did hunting. His social qualities and genuine 
humor fitted him for this sphere more than for the 
other. These "plays," without Abraham, were the 
play of Hamlet with Hamlet left out. He made things 
lively by his wit and geniality. Exactly what the 
" plays " were, we cannot affirm : we can only give their 
names as furnished by Dennis Hanks. " Throwing the 
mall," "cat," "four-corner bull-pen," "hopping and 
half-hammon," and " Sister Feby," an evening game. 



UPWARD AND ONWARD. 1 57 

Whatever these "plays " were, Abraham was "a bright 
particular star" in them, whenever and wherever his 
presence could be secured. 

From the time Abraham was eighteen years of age, 
his physical strength was remarkable. Some of the 
stories about his strength, told by the neighbors, are 
almost incredible. He was not only a giant in stature, 
but a giant in strength. Observers looked on amazed 
at the exhibition. Richardson, a neighbor, declares 
that he could carry a load to which the strength of 
three ordinary men would scarcely be equal. He 
saw him quietly pick up and walk away with "a chicken- 
house, made of poles pinned together, and covered, that 
weighed at least six hundred, if not much more." At 
another time, the Richardsons were building a corn- 
crib; Abe was there; and, seeing three or four men 
preparing "sticks" upon which to carry some huge 
posts, he relieved them of all further trouble by shoulder- 
ing the posts, single-handed, and walking away with 
them to the place where they were wanted. " He could 
strike with a mall," says old Mr. Wood, "a heavier 
blow than any man. ... He could sink an axe deeper 
into the wood than any man I ever saw."* Wrestling 
was a common and popular sport among pioneers, and 
here Abraham excelled all his companions. The sequel 
will show how his remarkable physical strength aided 
him in the labors, burdens, trials, and responsibilities 
of his public life. 

* Lamon's Life of Lincoln, p. 52. 




CHAPTER XII. 

ON THE FLAT-BOAT. 

|N the first of March, 1828, Abraham went 
to work for old Mr. Gentry, the proprietor 
of Gentryville. Here, again, he was a "man- 
of-all-work," doing whatsoever his employer 
found for him to do. Mr. Gentry had a son by the 
name of Allen, with whom Abraham worked. He was 
a little older than Abraham, and a suitable companion 
for him. 

"How would • you like to run a flat-boat to New 
Orleans, Abe?" said Mr. Gentry to him, early in April. 
"I believe you are used to boating." 

" I know something about it," Abraham replied. " I 
should like to go to New Orleans. How far is it?" 

" About eighteen hundred miles. I'm thinking of 
letting Allen take a trip there if you will go with 
him." 

"How soon?" 

•' Just as soon as you can get ready. I have a load 
of bacon and other produce on hand now. It's some 
work to get ready." 

" Well, I'll be ready any time you say, if father don't 
object, and I don't think he will," added Abraham. 



ON THE FLAT-BOAT. 1 59 

" He won't care if I pay you well for it," responded 
Mr. Gentry. " I shall give you eight dollars a month, 
and pay your passage home on a steamer. You and 
Allen together can manage such a trip well." 

Abraham's service of four or five weeks had satis- 
fied Mr. Gentry that he was just the hand to send 
on a trading expedition to New Orleans. His tact, 
strength and fidelity were three essential requisites to 
ensure a successful expedition. Flat-boating on the 
Western waters, at that time, was an exciting and 
perilous business ; and some account of it here will 
reflect light upon Abraham's venture. 

For some years there had been a class of boat- 
men, fearless, hardy, athletic men, who " traversed 
the longest rivers, penetrated the most remote wil- 
derness upon their watery routes, and kept up a 
trade and intercourse between the most distant 
points." 

They were exposed to great perils, and were out 
shelterless in all kinds of weather. With no bed but 
the deck of their boats on which to lie at night, and no 
covering but a blanket, they spent months and years 
of their existence. 

It was on such boats that the rich cargoes ascend- 
ing the Mississippi were carried. By human labor 
they were propelled against the strong current for 
nearly two thousand miles ; and it was a labor that 
required great muscular strength and remarkable 
powers of endurance. The result was that a class of 
men were trained in this business, of unusual courage, 
and proud only of their ability to breast storms and 
endure hardships. 



160 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

In addition to this class, whose life-business it was 
to propel these Western boats, there were those who 
occasionally made a trip to New Orleans to sell their 
stores. Sometimes several farmers, or other persons, 
would club together and make out a cargo, and send it 
down to New Orleans ; and sometimes one alone 
would do the same. This was the case with Mr. Gen- 
try. He had a quantity of stores suited to meet the 
wants of the sugar plantations in Louisiana, and he 
wanted to convert them into cash. Money was very 
scarce, and many families, like that of Mr. Lincoln, 
saw but little. What was in circulation was brought 
into the Western country by people moving thither 
from the East, or was obtained, as Mr. Gentry pro- 
posed to obtain some, by sending a boat-load of stores 
to New Orleans. 

Abraham consulted his father, who readily consented. 
His mother remarked : — 

" Eighteen hundred miles is rather of a long trip 
for a fellow who hasn't seen more of the world than 
you have, Abe." 

" None too long, mother. I shall see some of the 
world now if I never have before." 

" And perhaps see the bottom of the Mississippi," 
suggested his mother. 

" I'm not afraid of that." 

" But many have lost their lives in this way, and 
men who have been used to the business, too." 

"That's no sign I shall." 

" It's no sign you won't." 

" But I shan't borrow any trouble about it." 

" I don't ask you to do that ; but it's worth while to 
think of these things." 



ON THE FLAT-BOAT. l6l 

" If you don't wan't I should go, I will give it up 
now." Abraham inferred from his mother's manner 
of speaking, that she was unwilling he should go. 

" I do want you should go. I was only telling some 
of my thoughts. I can't help thinking." 

" It may be the best thing for me that I ever did," 
suggested Abraham. 

" Yes, if no accident happens to you, I have no 
doubt it will be a real good school for you. But it's a 
long ways to go, and a long time for you to be gone." 

" But I have got to go away some time, and I may 
as well begin now." 

" Very true ; but that makes it no easier for me to 
have you go. But it don't do any good to talk about 
it now." 

Preparations were made at once for the voyage. 
A boat was provided at Gentry's Landing, which was 
at Rockport, on the Ohio River, and Abraham and 
Allen proceeded to load the cargo. Here Abraham 
met with his old schoolmate, Miss Roby, whom he 
assisted, at Crawford's school, to spell defied correctly. 
She had grown into a winsome girl ; at least Allen 
Gentry thought so ; for he afterwards courted and 
married her. At the close of one day an incident 
occurred that shows how Abraham was wont to pick 
up knowledge. He was sitting with Miss Roby on the 
boat, when she remarked : — 

"The sun is going down." 

" No ; it isn't," Abraham replied naively. 

" You've lost your sight, then," suggested the girl, 
at the same time anticipating that Abraham was in- 
dulging in some roguery. 



1 62 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" I can see as well as you can," responded Abraham, 
" and I say, honestly, the sun is not going down, and 
what is more, it never will go dozun." 

" Wait and see," continued Miss Roby, laughing. 

"It will seem to go down," added Abraham, in an 
explanatory way. 

" I rather think it will," Miss Roby answered 
curtly. 

" We go down, not the sun," Abraham continued. 
"The sun stands still." 

" It moves enough for me," interrupted Miss Roby. 

Abraham went on to explain : — 

" You see the earth turns from west to east, and the 
revolution of the earth carries us under, as it were ; 
we do the sinking, as you call it. The sun does not 
really set ; it only appears to." 

" Abe ! what a fool you are ! " exclaimed the sur- 
prised girl, who began to think that too much learning 
had made her friend mad. 

Forty years afterwards, Miss Roby, who became 
Mrs. Gentry, said : — 

" Now I know that I was the fool, not Lincoln. I 
am now thoroughly satisfied that Abe knew the gen- 
eral laws of astronomy and the movements of the 
heavenly bodies. He was better read then than the 
world knows, or is likely to know exactly. No man 
could talk to me that night as he did unless he had 
known something of geography as well as astronomy. 
He often and often commented or talked to me about 
what he had read, — seemed to read it out of the book 
as he went along, — did so to others. He was the 
learned boy among us unlearned folks. He took great 




A Flat-Boatman. 



ON THE FLAT-BOAT. 1 63 

pains to explain, and could do it so simply. He was 
diffident then, too." 

To return to the trip to New Orleans. As soon 
as the cargo was loaded, the two boys started upon 
their voyage, Abraham serving as " bow-hand, to work 
the front oars." It was a very important event in the 
life of our young friend, and his heart was greatly 
elated. He was floating out into the broad world now. 
His young eyes would behold its sights and scenes for 
the first time. It is not strange that he pushed out 
into the Ohio with a glad heart, and moved down to- 
wards the "father of waters" with such anticipation 
as never fired his breast before. 

" I say, Abe, how many times are you going to upset 
before reaching the Mississippi ? " asked Allen. 

" I hardly think we shall do it more than once," 
answered Abraham, " unless you have a better faculty 
than I have for loading up again in the water." 

" I didn't think of that ; it would be a hard matter 
to reload at the bottom of the river." 

" Yes ; and we must look out for accidents, or your 
father will wish he had never sent us. I hope we 
shall make a capital thing of it." 

" I hope so too, or we shall never have another such 
a chance. The old man never would have sent me 
if it had n't been for you, Abe." 

" How so ? " 

" Because he thinks you can do most anything 
that's possible, and so he was willing to risk me and 
all the cargo with you." 

" Pshaw ! You are fooling now." 

" No such thing ; it's the living truth. I expect he 



164 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

thought that you could keep me and the cargo from 
sinking if we did upset." 

" Well, my mother rather expects the opposite, I 
judge by her talk," replied Abraham. " She thinks it is 
rather of a risky piece of business to send us on such 
a trip." 

"I 'spose 'tis," was Allen's thoughtful reply; "and 
it stands us in hand to do the very best we can." 

It must suffice to say that their trip proved to be a 
pleasant one. Many incidents occurred which we 
cannot relate here, nor is it necessary for our purpose. 
They lived upon the flat-boat, of course. At night 
they drew it up to the bank of the river, in some 
favorable spot, and tied it safely ; then laid down on 
their " running board," as a flat-boat was sometimes 
called, to sleep. They had no bed and nothing but 
a blanket to cover them. True, this was not so great 
a change for boys who were reared in the wilderness, 
as it would be for boys of this day who are used to the 
comforts and conveniences of affluent homes. Still it 
was a change, and many of their nights were extremely 
lonely. 

Their voyage was not monotonous. The scenery 
was continually changing, and they frequently passed 
other boats with their merry crews, and held conver- 
sations with people who flocked to the banks of the 
river from adjacent villages. " Where are you from ? " 
" Where are you bound ? " " What are you loaded 
with?" were questions that they frequently had to 
answer. 

The days were not all sunshine. Heavy storms 
sometimes descended upon them, and they had to 



ON THE FLAT-BOAT. 1 65 

exert themselves to the utmost to keep their little 
craft right side up. Day after day they were drenched 
with rain, and still they must keep on the voyage. 
Violent storms sometimes raged at night, the wind 
blowing almost a hurricane, and the rain pouring down 
in torrents, and still there was no alternative, — they 
must make their bed on their little boat and take the 
pelting of the storm. Those were times that tried 
their spirit, and yet they had no complaints to utter. 
Never for a moment did Abraham wish he had not 
undertaken the voyage. The object of his expedition 
had taken complete possession of his soul. 

At Madame Bushane's plantation, six miles below 
Baton Rouge, they had an adventure that is worthy of 
rehearsal here. The boat was tied up, and the boys 
were fast asleep in the stern when footsteps on board 
awoke them. After listening a moment, Abraham 
whispered : 

" Foul play, Allen ! A gang of niggers come to 
rob us ! " 

Thinking to frighten them away, Allen shouted, 
"Bring the guns, Abe, shoot 'em." 

But the negroes did not flee, and the silence was as 
oppressive as the darkness. 

" Trouble for us," said Abraham in a low tone, 
as he sprung to his feet and put his hand upon a 
billet of wood. " We must fight for our lives. 
Come." 

Waiting and listening again for a moment, and hear- 
ing nothing, Abraham cried out : 

" Who's there ? " No response. 

" Who's there ? " he called with more emphasis. 



1 66 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The voices of several negroes, in threatening tones, 
responded. 

" What are you here for, you rascals ? " thundered 
Abraham. " Be off with yourselves, or we'll throw you 
into the river." And he dashed after them in the 
darkness, followed by Allen. The negroes stood their 
ground, armed with cudgels, and a fearful battle began 
at once. 

" Kill them ! " shouted Abraham to Allen. " They 
mean to kill us. Knock the scoundrels into the 
water." 

And the clubs flew, and heavy blows were dealt 
back and forth, until the contest became so close and 
hot that clubs were useless, and a hand-to-hand fight 
was inevitable. For ten minutes or more the conflict 
raged, spattering the deck with blood, and threatening 
the saddest results. At length, however, Abraham 
threw one of the number into the river, when the 
others leaped from the boat upon the shore. 

" Let's after them ! " shouted Abraham, so thoroughly 
aroused and excited as to banish all fear. " Show them 
no quarter." 

And the boys pursued them with their clubs for half 
a mile, yelling at such a rate that the negroes thought, 
no doubt, that a half score of boatmen were after them. 
They were Madame Bushane's slaves, seeking plunder 
on the boat, and they were thoroughly terrified. They 
had not counted upon such a belligerent reception. 
Abraham and Allen saw at once that it was a case of 
life and death, and therefore they fought with despera- 
tion. The negroes left some of their best blood on 
deck, and it was mingled with that of our two young 



ON THE FLAT-BOAT. 1 67 

boatmen. For they received blows well nigh as hard 
as those they gave, and their blood told of their 
wounds. Abraham received a blow over his right eye, 
the scar of which he carried through life. 

"We must get the boat off now as quick as pos- 
sible," said Allen, as they returned from the pursuit. 
" The scamps may come back with twice the num- 
ber." 

" I was just thinking of that," replied Abraham, 
"Jump aboard, and I will untie the boat. We must 
lose no time." 

In a minute Allen was aboard, and scarcely another 
minute had passed before Abraham followed him, hav- 
ing loosed the boat. 

" We are safe now, if the whole plantation comes," 
said Allen, as they shoved off into the stream. 

" We sha'n't need to go far," added Abraham. " Only 
change our position, and we are safe." 

" That may be, but I think I shall sleep with my 
eyes open the rest of the night." 

" And I will keep you company," responded Abra- 
ham. "The next time I come to New Orleans, I shall 
come armed. This going to war without a gun is not 
quite the thing." 

" I wish we had been armed," said Allen. " Would n't 
we have made the feathers fly ? " 

"The wool, you mean," replied Abraham, jocosely. 
He had become as cool as if nothing had happened. 

" They meant to kill us." 

" Of course they did. It would n't have done for 
them to rob us, and leave us to tell the story to their 
master. But they might have made way with us, and 



1 68 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

robbed and sunk the boat, and nobody been any the 
wiser for it." 

" They are no fools, if they be niggers." 

" No ; but after all they are not so much to blame," 
added Abraham. " Slavery has robbed them of every- 
thing, and so I s'pose they think it is fair play to take 
what they can get." 

We shall only add that the voyage was continued to 
New Orleans, and the cargo of bacon and other produce 
disposed of to advantage. The boys returned to In- 
diana on the deck of a steamer, according to Mr. 
Gentry's arrangement before they started. 

It is a remarkable fact, that Abraham, who fought 
the slaves to save his life, should become their emanci- 
pator, as we shall discover, thirty-five years thereafter ! 




CHAPTER XIII. 

SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 

JHERE is very satisfactory evidence that 
Abraham went on a trading trip for his 
father before he served Mr. Gentry, and 
that he built a boat himself for the expedi- 
tion. For Mr. Carpenter, the painter, in his " Six 
Months in the White House," has the following from 
Mr. Lincoln's lips, related to show how he came 
into possession of the first dollar he could call his 
own : — 

In the Executive Chamber, one evening, there 
were present a number of gentlemen, among them 
Mr. Seward. 

A point in the conversation suggesting the thought, 
the President said : " Seward, you never heard, did 
you, how I earned my first dollar?" "No," rejoined 
Mr. Seward. "Well," continued Mr. Lincoln, "I was 
about eighteen years of age. I belonged, you know, 
to what they call down South, the ' scrubs ; ' people 
who do not own slaves are nobody there. But we 
had succeeded in raising, chiefly by my labor, suffi- 
cient produce, as I thought, to justify me in taking it 
down the river to sell. 



170 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" After much persuasion, I got the consent of 
mother to go, and constructed a little flat-boat, large 
enough to take a barrel or two of things that we had 
gathered, with myself and little bundle, down to New 
Orleans. A steamer was coming down the river. We 
have, you know, no wharves on the Western streams ; 
and the custom was, if passengers were at any of the 
landings, for them to go out in a boat, the steamer 
stopping and taking them on board. 

" I was contemplating my new flat-boat, and won- 
dering whether I could make it stronger or improve it 
in any particular, when two men came down to the 
shore in carriages, with trunks, and looking at the dif- 
ferent boats, singled out mine, and asked, ' Who owns 
this ? ' I answered, somewhat modestly, ' I do.' ' Will 
you,' said one of them, ' take us and our trunks out to 
the steamer.' 'Certainly,' said I. I was very glad to 
have the chance of earning something. I supposed 
that each of them would give me two or three bits. 
The trunks were put on my flat-boat, the passengers 
seated themselves on the trunks, and I sculled them 
out to the steamboat. 

" They got on board, and I lifted up their heavy 
trunks, and put them on deck. The steamer was 
about to put on steam again, when I called out that 
they had forgotten to pay me. Each of them took 
from his pocket a silver half-dollar, and threw it on the 
floor of my boat. I could scarcely believe my eyes as 
I picked up the money. Gentlemen, you may think 
it was a very little thing, and in these days it seems to 
me a trifle ; but it was a most important incident in 
my life. I could scarcely credit that I, a poor boy, 






SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 171 

had earned a dollar in less than a day, — that by hon- 
est work I had earned a dollar. The world seemed 
wider and fairer before me ; I was a more hopeful and 
confident being from that hour." 

Abraham had earned money before, considerable of 
it, but it belonged to his father, who did not believe 
that a boy had any necessary use for it. The dollar 
received for carrying the trunks he regarded his 
own. 

Abraham felt, after leaving Mr. Gentry, that he was 
competent to earn more than he had done. Doubt- 
less, also, his success in flat-boating awakened a strong 
desire to continue in that business. For, one day, he 
went to Mr. Wood's house, and stood around for some 
time, as if he wanted to say something he lacked 
courage to express. 

"What is it, Abe ? " inquired Mr. Wood. 

" I want to get a place to work on the river." 

" That so ? And what can I do for you ? " 

" I would like to have you give me a recommenda- 
tion to some boat, if you will." 

"But you are not of age yet, Abe. Your father 
has a claim on you." In that hard country, at that 
time, parents needed the help of their sons, and their 
claim upon their labor was enforced with rigor. 

"I know that," continued Abraham; "but I want 
to get a start somewhere, and I can do more for father 
so than I can by staying around here." 

" That may be ; but that's no reason why I should 
interfere ; you and your father must settle that." 

Abraham turned away from this interview somewhat 
disappointed, yet disposed to make the best of it. He 



172 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

abandoned the idea of life on the river, and continued 
about home. Not long afterward, Mr. Wood saw him 
cutting down a large tree in the forest to whip-saw 
into plank. 

" What's up now, Abe ? " Mr. Wood inquired. 

" A new house ; father is talking of putting up a 
new house." 

" Ah ! And you are getting the lumber ready ? " 

" Yes ; going to have it all ready by the time he gets 
ready to build." 

"A better house, I suppose ?" said Mr. Wood, in- 
quiringly. 

" I hope so ; mother wants it badly." 

"Well, I don't blame her," added Mr. Wood, as he 
turned away. 

But Abraham's father did not build the house, as 
we shall learn in the next chapter. The lumber was 
prepared, but the project of removing to Illinois 
changed his purpose, and the lumber was sold to 
Josiah Crawford — the man who extorted work from 
Abraham for the book. 

David Turnham bought a copy of the "Statutes of 
Indiana," and Abraham heard of it, in consequence of 
which he called upon the neighbor. 

" Can I see your copy of the Statutes of Indiana? I 
hear you have one," Abraham asked. 

"Of course you can, Abe," answered David. "Going 
to study law? It wouldn't be bad business for you." 

"I sha'n't begin to-day," responded Abraham; "but 
I want to take a look into the laws of Indiana. I don't 
know much about them." 

"That's the case with me ; and that's the reason I 



SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 1 73 

bought the book. I can't spare it for you to take 
home, for I study it every minute I have to spare." 

"I can read it here, just as well," replied Abraham, 
as David handed him the book. "It don't make any 
difference where I read it." 

The result was that Abraham spent much time at 
David Turnham's in studying the statutes of his adopted 
State. When David wanted the book, Abraham turned 
to Scott's Lessons and Sinbad the Sailor, two books 
which David owned. He read these books through at 
David's house, besides studying the laws of Indiana 
quite thoroughly. To him the Statutes were by no 
means dry, as they would have been to most of his 
companions ; for they opened a new and wide field of 
research to his inquiring mind. Without doubt, the 
influence of that study upon his future career was 
marked. It began to be seen very soon ; for, one day, 
he said to David, — 

" I'm going to Booneville to court ; won't you go 
with me?" 

" Going to be tried for your life ? " replied David, in 
a vein of humor. 

"Going to see how they try other folks for their 
lives," answered Abraham. " I never went into a court- 
room, and I'm going to before I'm a week older." 

"How are you going, Abe ? " 

" Going to walk, of course ; not much of a trip 
there." 

"Well, it may not be much of a walk for your long 
legs, but it's a long one for mine," responded David. 
" I think I will be excused till you get to be a lawyer 
and have a case at the bar, then I'll walk fifteen miles 
to see and hear." 



174 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Abraham walked to Booneville, fifteen miles, to court, 
and was doubly paid for his trouble. The novelty and 
excitement of the scene captivated him so completely 
that he walked thither, again and again afterwards, to 
enjoy the treat. At one time a murder trial was on 
the docket, in which one of the best lawyers of the 
State was counsel for the defence — John Breckinridge, 
Esq. Abraham heard his able and eloquent plea, and 
would have sat a week to listen to the speaker. " If I 
could ever become such a speaker, I should be perfectly 
satisfied," he said within himself. He was so thoroughly 
charmed by the speech, that he forgot his usual modesty, 
and, at the close of the court, stepped up to Mr. Breck- 
inridge and said, — 

" That was the best speech I ever heard." 
The lawyer looked at the shabby boy, as if surprised 
at his boldness ; but did not deign a reply. He passed 
on, leaving Abraham to his own reflections. It deserves 
to be recorded here, that John Breckinridge met Abra- 
ham at Washington when the latter was President. 
Breckinridge was a resident of Texas then, and was a 
rebel. As he did not know who the shabby boy was 
who addressed him at Boonville, he did not know, of 
course, that it was he who had become President. But 
Lincoln recognized the eloquent pleader of Booneville 
at once, and kindly refreshed the rebel's memory. 
Breckinridge had applied for executive clemency, and 
that Booneville speech became a favorable introduction. 
Mr. Lincoln said to him, " It was the best speech that 
I ever heard up to that time. If I could, as I then 
thought, make as good a speech as that, my soul would 
be satisfied." 



SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 1 75 

Through Abraham's influence a "speaking-meeting," 
or, as we call it now, a lyceum, was started at Gentry- 
ville. 

" It will be very improving," said Abraham to Nat 
Grigsby, "to say nothing about the fun of the thing." 
He was making a plea for such an institution. 

" If we were all like you, Abe, there would be both 
improvement and fun in the thing, but we are not," 
answered Nat. " I'll do what I can, though." 

" And that is all any of us can do." 

" What will you do at your speaking-meeting ? " Nat 
continued. 

" Speak pieces, discuss questions, and read compo- 
sitions," answered Abraham. " We can have real good 
times." 

" We might if we could all speak and write and argue 
as you can," responded Nat. " But most of us will 
have to take back seats in such a meeting, I tell you. 
But I go in for it." 

All the young people favored the enterprise finally, 
and not a few of the older ones. It started with flying 
colors, and Abraham was in his element. The pieces 
he had committed to memory as a pastime now served 
him a good purpose, and, more than ever, the people 
extolled him. Old Mr. Gentry said, " Abe will make 
a great man sure as he lives." One of the enthusiastic 
women declared, " He will be President of the United 
States yet." 

In the discussions, Abraham was logical and witty ; 
and every body was on the alert to hear him speak. 
Among the questions discussed were, " Which is the 
stronger, wind or water?" and "Which has the most 



176 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

right to complain, the negro or the Indian ? " Abra- 
ham had picked up much information concerning 
wind and water, so that he was not at all limited for 
materials in the discussion. On the other question he 
had very definite views of his own, and not a little in- 
formation collected from here and there. He hated 
Indians out of respect to his ancestors, if for no other 
reason ; still, he considered them an abused race. But 
he spoke for the negro in that debate, and made his 
first public plea for the enslaved, at that time, on the 
free soil of Indiana. 

That Abraham did not improve in his personal ap- 
pearance, as he did in knowledge, is evident from a 
remark of Miss Roby, when he went to^ live with Mr. 
Gentry. She said, " Abe was then a long, thin, leggy, 
gawky boy, dried up and shrivelled." He appeared to 
be much older than he was. Caring little or nothing 
for dress, he continued to wear apparel of the genuine 
pioneer pattern, which made his homeliness more 
homely. A remark of Dennis, on one occasion, was 
quite expressive : " Abe has too much legs to be hand- 
some ; " and it was true. 

Still, he was the centre of attraction in all circles. 
Men, women and children loved to hear him talk. 
They would gather about him to listen, whether in 
house or field. He continued to improve, too, in this 
regard. Nat Grigsby says : — 

" When he appeared in company, the boys would 
gather and cluster around him to hear him talk. He 
was figurative in his speeches, talks, and conversations. 
He argued much from analogy, and explained things 
hard for us to understand by stories, maxims, tales, 



SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 1 77 

and figures. He would almost always point his lesson 
or idea by some story that was plain and near us, that 
we might instantly see the force and bearing of what 
he said." 

Later, Nat Grigsby and his brother were married at 
the same time, and brought their wives home to their 
father's cabin. They had a grand reception for pio- 
neer life, but, in consequence of some pique, did 
not invite Abraham, who felt the slight keenly. In 
his chagrin, he wrote a piece of poetry, which he 
called " The Chronicles of Reuben," (Reuben was the 
name of one of the Grigsby brothers,) and dropped 
it in the road where he was quite sure it would fall 
into their hands. It was a very sarcastic production, 
and caused quite a sensation, not only in the family, 
but also in the neighborhood. It was a thoughtless 
act of Abraham, which he regretted afterwards ; and 
the whole affair was subsequently settled on a lasting 
basis. Nat Grigsby wrote, after Abraham was dis- 
tinguished in public life : — 

" Lincoln did write what is called the ' Chronicles 
of Reuben ' — a satire on the Grigsbys and Josiah 
Crawford, — not the school-master, but the man who 
lent Lincoln 'The Life of Washington.' The satire 
was good, sharp, cutting ; it hurt us then, but it is all 
over now. There is no family in the land who, after 
this, loved Abe so well, and who now look upon him 
as so great a man. We all voted for him, — all that 
could, — children and grandchildren, first, last, and 
always." 

Dennis Hanks, who ought to know more about 
Abraham, from fourteen to eighteen years of age, than 



178 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

any of his companions, has so characteristically de- 
scribed his way of learning and making progress, that 
we quote his description here : — 

" He learned by sight, scent and hearing. He heard 
all that was said, and talked over and over the ques- 
tions heard ; wore them slick, greasy and threadbare. 
He went to political and other speeches and gather- 
ings ; he would hear all sides and opinions, talk them 
over and discuss them, agreeing or disagreeing. Abe, 
as I said before, was originally a Democrat after the 
order of Jackson, so was his father, so we all were. 
He preached, made speeches, read for us, explained to 
us, etc. . . . Abe was a cheerful boy, a witty boy, was 
humorous always ; sometimes would get sad, not very 
often. . . . He would frequently make political and 
other speeches to the boys ; he was calm, logical and 
clear always. He attended trials, went to court always, 
read the Revised Statutes of Indiana, dated 1827, 
heard law speeches, and listened to law trials, etc. He 
was always reading, scribbling, writing, ciphering, 
writing poetry, and the like. ... In Gentryville, about 
one mile west of Thomas Lincoln's farm, Lincoln 
would go and tell his jokes and stories, and was 
so odd, original, humorous and witty, that all the 
people in town would gather around him. He would 
keep them there till midnight. Abe was a good talker, 
a good reader, and was a kind of newsboy." 

In consequence of the prevalence of the milk-disease, 
from time to time, the Lincolns discussed the subject 
of removal to Illinois. John Hanks had gone thither, 
and sent back favorable reports of the country. John 
returned to Kentucky after residing with the Lincolns 



SUNDRY INCIDENTS. 1 79 

four years, as we have said before, and afterward re- 
moved to Illinois. It was natural, therefore, when the 
question of escaping from the dreaded milk-disease was 
raised, to turn towards that State. The next chapter 
will furnish an account of the removal. 




CHAPTER XIV. 

OFF TO ILLINOIS. 

[EFORE the ist of January, 1830, Mr. Lin- 
coln decided to remove to Illinois. Dennis 
Hanks and Levi Hall, who had married 
Mrs. Lincoln's daughters, concluded to re- 
move, also, with their families. Dennis had made a 
flying visit thither, after he had recovered from a 
severe attack of the milk-disease, and returned with 
marvellous stories about the country. He went to 
visit " Uncle John Hanks," who had settled four miles 
from Decatur, in Macon County. On this account, 
Mr. Lincoln decided to go directly to " Uncle John's." 
He sold his farm to the senior Gentry, and his corn 
and hogs to David Turnham. He received ten cents 
a bushel for his corn, and sold the hogs for a "song." 
He took with him to Illinois " some stock-cattle, one 
horse, one bureau, one table, one clothes-chest, one 
set of chairs, working utensils, clothing, etc." The 
goods belonging to the three families were loaded 
upon Mr. Lincoln's wagon, an " ironed " wagon, which 
was the first one he ever owned. It was drawn by 
four yoke of oxen, two of them Lincoln's and the other 
two Hanks's ; and Abraham drove the team. There 



OFF TO ILLINOIS. l8l 

were thirteen persons in all who went — men, women 
and children. 

Abraham was twenty-one years of age on the 
twelfth day of February, two or three days before 
they started upon their journey. 

" You are your own man now," said his father. 

" What of that ? " was Abraham's reply, suspecting 
what thoughts were in his mind. 

" Why, you can go or stay, though I don't see how 
I can get along without you." 

" Nor I ; and I want to go to Illinois more than you 
do, and I shall see you safely there, and settled down, 
before I leave you." 

" I'm glad of that," continued his father. " I won't 
ask you to stay at home one minute after we get set- 
tled down. You ought to be looking out for yourself, 
now that you are of age." 

"We'll talk about that when we get there. Per- 
haps I shall find enough to do for a while to get you 
fixed up, and I can attend to that better than you 
can." 

" Well, it's a long ways there, and I'm almost sorry 
that I undertook it at my time of life. It looks like a 
great job to get there, and begin new." 

" It don't to me. We'll be there, and have a roof 
over our heads, in less than four weeks." 

" If nothing happens, you mean." 

" There will something happen, I'm thinking," 
answered Abraham, dryly, "or we shall never get 
there." 

" What ? " 

" I expect that it will happen that we shall go there 



1 82 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

in about two weeks, by hard travelling. If that don't 
happen, I shall be sorry." 

"We shall see," added Mr. Lincoln. 

The fact was, Abraham thought too much of his 
father and mother to leave them to undertake such a 
journey alone. No money could have hired him to 
leave them before they were settled in Illinois. Mr. 
Scripps, who knows all the circumstances well, says : 
" He was the only son of his father, now advanced in 
years, and it was not in his nature to desert his aged 
sire at a time when all the hardships, privations, and 
toil of making a new home in a new country were 
about to be entered upon. Whatever the future may 
have seemed to hold in it, as a reward for effort 
specially directed to that end, he cheerfully put aside 
in obedience to his sense of duty, and engaged at once 
and heartily in the work before him." 

The above writer, a Western man himself, describes 
the manner of moving in those days, as follows : — 

" In those days, when people changed their resi- 
dence from one State or settlement to another, they 
took all their movable possessions with them, — their 
household goods, their kitchen utensils, including pro- 
visions for the journey, their farming implements, 
their horses and cattle. The former were loaded into 
wagons, drawn, for the most part, by oxen ; and the 
latter were driven by the smaller boys of the family, 
who were sometimes assisted by their sisters and 
mother. Thus arranged for a journey of weeks, — not 
unfrequently of months, — the emigrant set out, think- 
ing but little of the hardships before him, — of bad 
roads, of unbridged streams, of disagreeable weather, 



OFF TO ILLINOIS. 1 83 

of sleeping on the ground or in the wagon, of sickness, 
accidents, and sometimes death by the way, — dwelling 
chiefly in thought upon the novelty and excitement of 
the trip, the rumored attractions of the new country 
whither he was going, and of the probable advantages 
likely to result from the change. By ten or fifteen 
miles per day, over untravelled roads, now across 
mountains, swamps and watercourses, and now through 
dense, umbrageous forests, and across broad prairies 
where the horizon alone bounded the vision, the cara- 
van of wagons, men, women and children, flocks and 
herds, toiled onward by day, sleeping under the broad 
canopy of stars at night, patiently accomplishing the 
destined journey, sometimes of weeks', sometimes of 
months' duration." 

In this way the Lincoln, Hanks and Hall families 
moved to Illinois. The distance was about two hun- 
dred miles — not much of an undertaking for the per- 
severance and heroism of pioneer families. 

The weather proved favorable nearly all the way, 
though the roads were excessively muddy. For miles 
Abraham walked through mud a foot deep. Often, 
for a long distance, he waded in water up to his knees 
(and it is well known that his knees were not very low 
down). When they had performed nearly one hun- 
dred and fifty miles of the journey, they came to the 
Kaskaskia River, where they found the bottom lands 
overflowed, and the old corduroy road nearly gone, 

"We're done to now," said Hanks. 

" I don't know about that," answered Abraham. 
" Let us see about it." 

" It is plain enough to see, I should think. The 



1 84 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

man who directed us back there yesterday said, if the 
bottom was overflowed, it would be three miles 
through water, and I should think it was more than 
that." 

" I don't care if it's twice three," replied Abraham, 
" if it's not too deep to wade." 

"We can wait some days for the water to fall, or we 
can go up or down the river a few miles, and possibly 
find a better place to cross," suggested Hanks. 

" That will take too much time. The water won't 
fall yet awhile. It is February yet, you know, and the 
rivers are always high. I am for going straight ahead 
through thick and thin." 

"That's the only way, I think," said Mr. Lincoln, 
who had listened to the conversation, while he was 
looking rather doubtfully upon the flood of water before 
them. 

" We can't stay here for the water to fall, that's 
certain," continued Abraham, "and as to finding a 
better place to cross, I don't believe we can, if we go 
around twenty miles." 

"And that would take time, too," suggested his 
father. 

" Yes, and I am for going right along. I will go 
forward ; and if I go under, the rest of you may take 
warning." This remark was made rather in a strain 
of pleasantry, to inspire all hearts around him with 
courage. " Come, Dennis, what do you say ? Will 
you follow me ?" 

"Of course ; I can go where you can." 

It was settled to go forward, turning neither to the 
right hand nor left. And for three miles Abraham 



OFF TO ILLINOIS. 1 85 

drove his team through water that was up to his waist, 
urging his oxen along, and cheering the hearts of the 
company with words of encouragement. Mr. Lamon 
says, " In crossing the swollen and tumultuous Kas- 
kaskia the wagon and oxen were nearly swept away." 
But Abraham's pluck and energy overcame the diffi- 
culty, and, on the first day of March, 1830, they arrived 
at John Hanks' house, four miles northwest of Decatur. 
What kind of a cabin Uncle John possessed, we do not 
know, but the advent of thirteen visitors must have 
fully occupied all the spare room in it. But squeezing 
the largest number of persons into the smallest space 
was incidental to pioneer life. 

" I've fixed on the spot for you to settle," said Uncle 
John to Mr. Lincoln, " and there's a lot of logs there for 
a cabin, which I cut last year." 

"How far away is it?" inquired Mr. Lincoln. 

" Only a few miles ; and it will be a short job to put 
up a cabin, now the logs are all ready ; and you are 
welcome to them." 

" Well, that is a great lift," replied Mr. Lincoln ; 
" with the logs all cut, Abe, Dennis, and I will make 
short work of building a shelter." 

"And my help, too," added Uncle John ; "nothing 
to do now but to get you fixed." 

"I'm going to have a better house than we had in 
Indiana," chimed in Abraham, who was listening to the 
conversation. " Hewed logs, and less mud." 

"I'll second that project," interjected his mother. 
" A little more labor and expense upon a habitation 
will increase comforts ten-fold." 

The subject of a log-house was thus discussed, and 



1 86 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the following day, Mr. Lincoln, Uncle John, Abraham 
and Dennis repaired to the location selected, to investi- 
gate. It was on the north side of Sangamon River, 
about ten miles west of Decatur ; and, perhaps, six 
miles, in a straight line, from Uncle John's cabin. All 
were delighted with the location, mainly because it was 
at the junction of the timber and prairie lands, and 
was well supplied with water. 

Short work was made in erecting the best log-house 
the Lincoln family ever occupied. Abraham took 
charge of the work, because he was determined to have 
as good a house for his parents as could be built of 
logs. There was a good supply of material that Uncle 
John had prepared, from which Abraham selected the 
best logs, every one of which was carefully hewn, though 
the only tools they had to work with was a common axe, 
a broad-axe, a hand-saw, and a "drawer-knife." 

After the cabin was built, a smoke-house and stable 
were erected near by. The doors and floor of the cabin 
were made of puncheon, and the gable-ends of the 
structure boarded up with plank " rived " by Abraham's 
hand out of oak timber. The nails used — and they 
were very few — were all brought from their old home 
in Indiana.* 

"You never saw such land as this," remarked John 
Hanks to Mr. Lincoln. "The land in Indiana can't 
compare with this prairie land." 

" I'm convinced of that," answered Mr. Lincoln ; 
" the half wasn't told us. And we must turn over a big 
piece of it this spring for corn, and fence it, too. Abe 
is great on splitting rails." 

* Dr. Holland. 



OFF TO ILLINOIS. 1 87 

" He can have a chance to split 'em to his heart's 
content now," continued John. "It'll take a pile on 
'em to fence fifteen acres, and you'll want to put in as 
much as that." 

" And fifteen acres of such land as this will make 
such a corn-field as Indiana farmers are not acquainted 
with," added Mr. Lincoln. 

"Abe and I can break it up," continued John ; "and 
fence it into the bargain." 

This was the final decision, after the Lincolns were 
settled in their new home — that Abraham and John 
should plough the fifteen acres, and then fence the field. 
With the four yokes of oxen, each driving two yokes, 
the fifteen acres were turned over within a week ; and, 
as soon as the planting was done, the rail-splitting and 
fencing commenced in earnest. Abraham and John 
got out all the rails, and put up the fence around the 
fifteen acres. Those rails became historic after thirty 
years, and played an important part in an interesting 
chapter of our national career, as we shall learn here- 
after. 

With all his labor at home, Abraham found time to 
work out considerably in the neighborhood. Rev. A. 
Hale of Springfield, Illinois, visited the locality, after 
the death of Abraham Lincoln, and one Mrs. Brown 
related the following to him : — 

" I remember Mr. Lincoln. He worked for my old 
man, and helped make a crap. We lived on the same 
farm we live on now, and he worked and made a crap, 
and the next winter they hauled the crap all the way 
to Galena, and sold it. At that time there was no 
public-houses, and travellers were obliged to stay at 



1 88 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

any house along the road that could take them in. 
One evening a right smart-looking man rode up to the 
fence, and asked my old man if he could get to stay 
over night. ' Well,' said Mr. Brown, ' we can feed 
your crittur, and give you something to eat, but we 
can't lodge you unless you can sleep on the bed with 
the hired man.' The man hesitated, and asked, ' Where 
is he?' 'Well,' said Mr. Brown, 'you can come and 
see him.' So the man got down from his crittur, and 
Mr. Brown took him around to where, in the shade of 
the house, Abe lay his full length on the ground, with 
an open book before him. 'There,' said Mr. Brown, 
pointing to him, 'he is.' The stranger looked at him 
a minute, and said, 'Well, I think he'll do;' and he 
stayed and slept with the President of the United 
States." 

It is claimed that Mrs. Brown was wrong in saying 
that Abraham worked for her husband, the fact being 
that he worked for one Taylor, near by, and boarded 
with her. It is probable, also, that he worked for him 
only at such times, during that first summer in Illinois, 
as he was not needed at home. 

"Abe was the roughest looking fellow I ever saw," 
remarked George Cluse, who worked with him occa- 
sionally that year ; " he was so tall, awkward and 
wrinkled ! " 

" Was he a good worker ?" 

" None better to be found ; and he knew more than 
any man I ever saw ; but his dress was comical." 

" How did he dress?" 

" He wore trousers made of flax and tow, cut tight 
at the ankles, and out at both knees. I looked bad 



OFF TO ILLINOIS. 1 89 

enough myself, but compared with him, my dress was 
superb." At the time Thomas Lincoln left Indiana, 
few families in that part of the country used woollen 
goods. They were unknown there until about 1825. 

"I split rails with him a good deal," continued 
Cluse. " He'd split more rails in a day than any other 
man. He was strong as an ox, and never got tired.' 
He made a bargain that season with Nancy Miller, to 
split four hundred rails for every yard of brown jeans, 
dyed with white walnut bark, that would be necessary 
to make him a pair of trousers ; and that was the way 
he got trousers that were not out at the knees." 

" What about reading ? Was he fond of books ? " 

"When I worked with him, he'd not much chance 
to fool with books ; but he was always talking history, 
and politics, and great men ; and I have seen him 
going to his work with a book in his hand. Then, Abe 
walked five, six, and seven miles to his work." 

It is quite evident that Abraham made himself ex- 
tremely useful in Illinois in the year 1830 by his in- 
dustry and hard labor. He made himself very agree- 
able, also, by his intelligence and social qualities. 
George Cluse says, " He was a welcome guest in every 
house in the neighborhood." 

In the autumn of that year, fever and ague visited 
the region of Decatur, and every member of the Lin- 
coln family were attacked by it — not severely, never- 
theless with sufficient violence to make them "shake." 
Even Abraham's stalwart frame came under its power 
for a brief season ; but he shook it off before it had 
much of a chance to shake him. The experience, how- 
ever, satisfied the family that their location in Illinois 



190 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

was not favorable to health. And we may state here 
as well as anywhere, that, in consequence of the ap- 
pearance of this disease, Mr. Lincoln removed subse- 
quently to a more favorable locality, and finally settled 
in Cole's County, where he died on the 17th of Jan- 
uary, 1 85 1. 

The first winter of the Lincolns in Illinois was a 
very trying one. It was the winter of the "great 
snow," as it was called, when, for weeks, it averaged 
three feet deep. Being chiefly dependent upon the 
rifle for meat, the severity of the winter interfered 
somewhat with their supplies. But for the strength, 
endurance, and perseverance of Abraham, their com- 
forts would have been abridged much more. His use 
of the rifle during that rigorous winter well nigh dis- 
proved what one of his early associates writes to us, 
viz. : " Abe was not much of a hunter ; we seldom went 
hunting together. The time spent by us boys in this 
amusement was improved by him in the perusal of 
some good book." 




CHAPTER XV. 
ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 

JENTON OFFUTT was a trader, residing at 
New Salem. Meeting John Hanks, one day, 
he said: — 

" John ! I want you to take a boat for me 
to New Orleans on a trading trip ; you understand the 
business." John had some reputation as a waterman. 

" I can't do it; don't fancy the bisness." 

" Fudge ! you can do it if you only think so. I'll 
pay you extra for it. You are the only man who can 
do it to suit me." 

" I know of a man who can do it for you," said John. 
" Abe Lincoln understands it ; and perhaps he'll do it." 

" Who's Abe Lincoln ?" 

" He's a relative of mine ; came to Illinois from 
Indiana about one year ago, and settled a few miles 
from me." 

"Well, I don't know anything about him," continued 
Offutt, " and I do know about you. Say you'll go." 

" Maybe I'll go if Abe and John Johnston will go." 

" And who's John Johnston ? " 

" He is Abe Lincoln's step-brother, and lives with 
him. He came with him from Indiana." 



192 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" And you think they are good men for the business ? ' 

" I know they are ; Abe, especially, can't be beat on 
a boat. He's the tallest and strongest chap in Illinois." 

" Well, now, John, I'll do most any way to get you to 
undertake the trip," continued Offutt ; " and if you'll 
see your two friends, and get them to go, I'll see that 
they'll make a good thing of it." 

" How much pay will you give?" 

" I'll give you — all three of you — fifty cents a day ; 
and, at the end of the trip, I will divide sixty dollars, 
in addition, equally between you." 

" That's good pay, and no mistake," replied John, 
who was rather surprised at the generosity of the offer : 
" I think we'll be able to arrange it." 

Offutt was a man of considerable property for that 
region, and he was generous, too, some said " too 
generous for his own good." 

John Hanks lost no time in laying the subject before 
Abraham and Johnston. 

" I should like the job," Abraham replied at once. 
" That is larger pay than I ever had, and I rather like 
the business." 

"I can't say that I like the business," said Hanks; 
"but I think I'll accept this offer. Offutt is a capital 
fellow, and I would go on such a trip for him a little 
quicker than I would for anybody else." 

" Agreed," was John Johnston's laconic way of say- 
ing that he would go. The fact was, Offutt had made 
them a very generous offer — larger pay than any one 
of them had ever received. 

It was February, 1831, when Offutt made the offer; 
and, early in March, the fortunate trio left home to 






ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 193 

meet Offutt at Springfield, according to arrangement. 
They proceeded down the Sangamon in a canoe to 
Jamestown (then known as Judy's Ferry) five miles 
east of Springfield. Thence they walked to Spring- 
field, where they met Offutt at "Elliott's Tavern." 
Offutt met Abraham with a look of surprise. He was 
not expecting to see a giant, although Hanks told him 
that his relative was the tallest man in Illinois ; nor 
was he expecting to see a man as green as he was tall. 
However, they were soon on the best of terms, and 
Offutt said: — 

" I've been badly disappointed ; expected a boat built 
by this time, at the mouth of Spring Creek, but I 
learned yesterday that it wan't touched ; and now what's 
to be done? " 

" Build a boat at once," answered Abraham, with a 
promptness that won Offutt's heart. 

"Can you build a boat?" asked Offutt. 

"Of course I can," replied Abraham. "We three 
can put the job through in three weeks." 

"We'll have the boat, then, in short order," responded 
Offutt. " Plenty of timber at Spring Creek, and we 
can raft it down to Sangamontown, and build the boat 
there." 

They repaired to Spring Creek, and spent about two 
weeks there cutting timber "on Congress land," board- 
ing a full mile from their work. While there, Abraham 
walked back to Judy's Ferry, ten miles distant, and 
brought down the canoe which they had left there. 
The timber was rafted down to Sangamontown, where 
Abraham and his two companions erected a shanty for 
temporary shelter. Here they boarded themselves, 



194 PIONEER -HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Abraham playing the part of "cook" to the entire 
satisfaction of the two Johns. The lumber was sawed 
at Kilpatrick's mill, one mile and a half distant. With 
all these inconveniences, the boat was ready for the 
trip within four weeks, and a very substantial boat it 
was. 

Offutt joined the party at Sangamontown, and was 
present during the construction of the boat. He soon 
learned that the long, tall, and green Abraham was a 
young man of rare talents. Offutt was a Whig, and so 
was Abraham now, although the latter was not willing 
to hear the former abuse Jackson. Offutt indulged his 
pique in this line, and Abraham met him squarely, and 
hot discussions followed, enlivening the camp and 
making merry times. Offutt was quite a politician, but 
Abraham was more than a match for him. His famil- 
iarity with the lives of a few of the great men of the 
country, and the habits, customs and principles of their 
times, gave him a decided advantage over Offutt. Abra- 
ham often contributed to the merriment of the camp 
by reciting " prose-like orations " and quoting poetry. 
He also extracted a large amount of fun out of his 
new occupation — that of "cook." On the whole, the 
two weeks at boat-building were merry ones, and they 
quickly sped. 

While the little company were employed at Sanga- 
montown, a juggler gave an exhibition in the upper 
room of John Carman's house. Another says : "Abe 
went to it dressed in a suit of rough bluejeans. He 
had on shoes, but the trousers did not reach them by 
about twelve inches ; and the naked shin, which had 
excited John Romine's laughter years ago in Indiana, 



ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 1 95 



was still exposed. Between the roundabout and the 
waist of the trousers there was another wide space un- 
covered ; and, considering these defects, his attire was 
thought to be somewhat inelegant, even in those 
times. His hat, however, was a great improvement 
on coon skins and opossum. It was woollen, broad- 
brimmed and low-crowned. In his hat ' the showman 
cooked eggs.' Whilst Abe was handing it up to him, 
after the man had long sought for a similar favor from 
the rest of the audience, he remarked, 'Mister, the 
reason I didn't give you my hat before was out of re- 
spect to your eggs, not care for my hat.' ' 

As soon as the boat was completed, a partial cargo 
of barrel-pork, hogs and corn was taken on board, and 
the craft started down the river. Offutt went in the 
capacity of merchant, to make purchases along the 
way. Just below New Salem, of which we shall hear 
and see much hereafter, the boat stuck fast on Rut- 
ledge's dam through one night and part of a day — 
" one end of it hanging over the dam and the other 
sunk deep in the water behind." 

" A pretty fix now," cried out Offutt ; " it will take 
longer to get out of this scrape than it did to build the 
boat." 

"Guess not," replied Abraham, who took in the 
situation at a glance. " We must unload, though." 

"Into the river, I s'pose," responded Offutt. 

" Borrow a boat, and transfer the cargo to it, and let 
us see what can be done," continued Abraham. 

This was in the morning, after the boat had " stuck " 
through the night. Nearly all the people of New 
Salem had assembled on shore watching the move- 
ments. 



196 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Your boat will sink or break in two pieces, if you 
are not in a hurry," cried out a looker-on. And such 
a result seemed inevitable. For the cargo was sliding 
backwards, and the peril increased with every passing 
minute. But, under Abraham's direction, the cargo 
was soon shifted to a borrowed boat, when he imme- 
diately bored a large hole in the bottom of that part of 
the boat extending over the dam. Then he erected 
"queer machinery" for tilting the part of the boat 
under water, and holding it in position until the water 
was emptied through the hole bored. Stopping up the 
hole after the water had run out was the work of only 
a few minutes, when the relieved craft was pushed 
over the dam, and glided into the deep pool below 
amidst the hurrahs of the many beholders. Offutt 
was particularly elated. 

" That's real skill, Abe," he cried ; " one in a thou- 
sand couldn't do that. Three cheers for Abe Lin- 
coln," he shouted, swinging his hat, and leading the 
cheers vociferously. 

It was a hearty tribute to Abraham's ingenuity in 
which the observers joined without reserve. 

" When I get back from New Orleans," shouted 
Offutt, turning to the beholders on shore, " I'll build a 
steamboat to navigate the Sangamon River, and make 
Abe captain. I'll build it with runners for ice and 
rollers for shoals and dams, and, by thunder, it will 
have to go, with Abe for captain." 

This funny way of putting it awoke another burst 
of applause from the spectators, while the tall, awk- 
ward Abraham shook his sides with laughter. 

This mishap to their craft set Abraham to thinking 



ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 197 

of ways to overcome the difficulties of navigating 
Western rivers. It was several years, however, before 
his thoughts and studies thereupon took tangible 
shape in the form of an invention. After he was 
elected President, the Washington correspondent of 
the Boston Advertiser wrote as follows concerning 
it: — 

" Occupying an ordinary and common-place position in one of 
the show cases in the large hall of the Patent Office is one little 
model which, in ages to come, will be prized as at once one of 
the most curious and one of the most sacred relics in that vast 
museum of unique and priceless things. This is a plain and 
simple model of a steamboat, roughly fashioned in wood, by the 
hand of Abraham Lincoln. It bears date in 1849, when the 
inventor was known simply as a successful lawyer and rising 
politician of Central Illinois. Neither his practice nor his poli- 
tics took up so much of his time as to prevent him from giving 
much attention to contrivances which he hoped might be of 
benefit to the world and of profit to himself. 

" The design of this invention is suggestive of one phase of 
Abraham Lincoln's early life, when he went up and down the 
Mississippi as a flat-boatman, and became familiar with some of 
the dangers and inconveniences attending the navigation of the 
Western rivers. It is an attempt to make it an easy matter to 
transport vessels over shoals and snags and sawyers. The main 
idea is that of an apparatus resembling a noiseless bellows placed 
on each side of the hull of the craft, just below the water-line, 
and worked by an odd but not complicated system of ropes, 
valves and pulleys. When the keel of the vessel grates against 
the sand or obstruction, these bellows are to be filled with air . 
and thus buoyed up, the ship is expected to float lightly and 
gayly over the shoal which would otherwise have proved a serious 
interruption to her voyage. 

" The model, which is about eighteen or twenty inches long, 
and has the air of being whittled with a knife out of a shingle 
and a cigar-box, is built without any elaboration or ornament, or 



198 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

any extra apparatus beyond that necessary to show the operation 
of buoying the steamer over the obstructions. Herein it differs 
from very many of the models which share with it the shelter of 
the immense halls of the Patent Office, and which are fashioned 
with wonderful nicety and exquisite finish, as if much of the 
labor and thought and affection of a lifetime had been devoted to 
their construction. This is a model of a different kind ; carved 
as one might imagine a retired rail-splitter would whittle, strongly, 
but not smoothly, and evidently made with a view solely to con- 
vey, by the simplest possible means, to the minds of the patent 
authorities, an idea of the purpose and plan of the simple inven- 
tion. The label on the steamer's deck informs us that the patent 
was obtained ; but we do not learn that the navigation of the 
Western rivers was revolutionized by this quaint conception. 
The modest little model has reposed here sixteen years; and, 
since it found its resting-place here on the shelf, the shrewd in- 
ventor has found it his task to guide the Ship of State over 
shoals more perilous, and obstructions more obstinate, than any 
prophet dreamed of when Abraham Lincoln wrote his bold auto- 
graph on the prow of this miniature steamer." 

When the boat was safely over the dam, in the 
deep pool below, it was re-loaded, and then sped on 
its way. At Salt Creek, Offutt stopped to make a 
purchase of live hogs, but the wild vicious animals 
were determined not to go on board ; and they were 
full of fight. Once on board, they might make fearful 
war upon each other, causing much trouble to the 
trader and his crew. After vainly trying to drive the 
hogs towards the river, Abraham remarked : — 

" It's no use ; they are too ugly to go where you 
want them to go." 

" They wouldn't be hogs, if they did," responded 
Offutt. " You'll have to get up some sort of a tack- 
ling, Abe, to get them aboard, as you got the boat 



ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 199 

over the dam." The last remark was made partly in 
praise of Abraham, and partly in a vein of humor. 

" Sew up their eyes and tie their legs," exclaimed 
Abraham ; " there's no other way to get them aboard 
and keep them still after they get there." 

"That's it, exactly, Abe," replied Offutt ; "I knew 
that you could find a way out of the trouble. Let's 
see you put your theory in practice." 

Abraham seized a hog by the ears, and directed 
Hanks to hold him by the tail, while Offutt should tie 
his legs and sew up his eyelids. " If he fights, he 
must fight in the dark," he added. 

The experiment proved successful ; and the hogs 
were loaded into a cart and drawn to the river, 
where Abraham took them up in his long arms, one 
by one, and carried them aboard. 

" Rather cruel," he said, " but there's no help for it. 
In a battle with wild hogs we must use war-tactics." 

"You're a genius, Abe," said Offutt; "ugly hogs 
and dams and shoals are of little account to you." 

Before leaving Salt Creek, Abraham rigged up 
"curious-looking sails," with plank and cloth to in- 
crease their speed. The device accomplished his 
purpose; but it "was a sight to behold," as one re- 
liable witness declared. When they " rushed down 
through Beardstown," the craft presented such a comi- 
cal appearance that " the people came out and laughed 
at them." 

"Let them laugh and take it out in laughing, so 
long as the thing works well," said Abraham, rather 
enjoying the singular exhibition because it attracted 
attention. 



2O0 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

They stopped only at Memphis, Vicksburg and 
Natchez, after leaving Salt Creek, during the whole 
distance to New Orleans, where they arrived without 
another drawback. Offutt disposed of his goods 
readily, and made a very profitable trip of it. At the 
same time, he obtained such an insight into Abra- 
ham's character and abilities that he resolved to make 
the best use of him possible in future. 

" Inhuman," exclaimed Abraham, one day, when 
they saw a gang of slaves chained together, and a 
merciless driver cracking his whip about their heads. 
" A nation that tolerates such inhumanity will have to 
pay for it some day." 

"They are used to it," replied Offutt, "and mind 
no more about it than cattle." 

"What if they don't?" retorted Abraham. "You 
can't make cattle of men without being inhuman. 
I tell you, the nation that does it will be cursed." 

"Not in our day," remarked Offutt. 

" In somebody's day, though," responded Abraham, 
promptly. 

That Abraham's visits to New Orleans served to 
increase his hostility to slavery, there can be no 
doubt, especially his visit in 1831. For John Hanks 
said, thirty years afterwards, recalling the incidents 
of that memorable trip: — 

"There it was we saw negroes chained, maltreated, 
whipped and scourged. Lincoln saw it, and his heart 
bled. It made him sad, he looked bad, felt bad, was 
thoughtful and abstracted. I can say, knowing it, 
that it was on this trip that he formed his opinions of 
slavery. It ran its iron into him then and there, — 



ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 201 

May, 1 83 1. I have heard him say so, often and 
often." 

Providence was leading Abraham in a way that 
he knew not, disciplining him for the day when he 
would be forced to grapple with the system of Amer- 
ican slavery, to overthrow it. All such incidents as 
these become more interesting and important in 
their providential connection with his future public 
career. 

In June, Offutt, with his men, was ready to return, 
and he engaged passage for all on a steamer up the 
Mississippi to St. Louis. On the way up the river, 
Offutt surprised Abraham by saying: 

" Abe, I think you can sell goods for me ; how 
would you like it ?" 

"What kind of goods?" Abraham asked. 

"Store goods, such as country stores keep," Offutt 
answered. " How would you like to run my store at 
New Salem?" 

"I should like it well enough provided I could 
do it." 

"You can do it well enough ; I have no fear of that. 
If you'll say the word, I will put you in charge of my 
store at New Salem." 

"I'll say the word, then," continued Abraham, "if 
we can agree on the terms." 

They did agree upon the terms, and, before they 
parted company at St. Louis, it was arranged to trans- 
form Abraham into a "storekeeper." Offutt had so 
exalted an idea of Abraham's tact and ability, that he 
was prepared to commit almost any trust to his 
keeping. Abraham was to return home, visit his 



202 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

parents, and then repair to New Salem to be in- 
stalled over a country store. 

At St. Louis, Offutt's business made it necessary for 
him to separate from his efficient trio ; so Abraham, 
Hanks, and Johnston started on foot for the interior of 
Illinois. When they reached Edwardsville, twenty- 
five miles from St. Louis, Hanks took the road to 
Springfield, and Abraham and Johnston took that to 
Cole's County, whither Thomas Lincoln removed after 
Abraham left home. 

A few days after Abraham reached his father's 
house in Cole's County, a famous wrestler, by the 
name of Daniel Needham, called to see him. Need- 
ham had heard of Abraham's great strength, and 
that he was an expert wrestler, and he desired to 
see him. 

" S'pose we try a hug," suggested Needham. 

" No doubt you can throw me," answered Abraham. 
" You are in practice, and I am not." 

"Then you'll not try it?" continued Needham. 

" Not much sport in being laid on my back," was 
Abraham's evasive answer. 

" It remains to be seen who will lay on his back," 
suggested Needham. "S'pose you make the trial." 

By persistent urging Abraham finally consented to 
meet Needham, at a specified place and time, according 
to the custom that prevailed. Abraham was true to 
his promise, met the bully, and threw him twice with 
no great difficulty. 

Needham was both disappointed and chagrined. His 
pride was greatly humbled ; and his wrath was not a 
little exercised. 



ANOTHER TRIP TO NEW ORLEANS. 203 



" You have thrown me twice, Lincoln, but you can't 
whip me," he said. 

"I don't want to whip you, whether I can or not," 
Abraham replied magnanimously ; " and I don't want 
to get whipped;" and the closing sentence was spoken 
jocosely. 

"Well, I stump you to whip me," Needham cried, 
thinking that Lincoln was unwilling to undertake it. 
" Throwing a man is one thing and thrashing him is 
another." 

"You are right, my friend ; and I've no special desire 
to do either," answered Abraham. 

Needham continued to press him, whereupon Lincoln 
said : 

" Needham, are you satisfied that I can throw you ? 
If you are not, and must be convinced through a thrash- 
ing, I will do that, too, for your sake." 

This was putting the matter practically enough to 
open the bully's eyes, which was all Abraham hoped to 
accomplish. He was willing to show his strength by 
wrestling to please his companions and get a little sport 
out of it ; but he despised a bully like Needham, and 
considered such encounters for any purpose but sport 
as beneath his notice. Needham put the proper inter- 
pretation upon Abraham's words, and, considering 
" discretion the better part of valor," he withdrew as 
gracefully as possible. 

We shall turn next to Abraham's success as a coun- 
try merchant. 




CHAPTER XVI. 

IN A PIONEER STORE. 

JBOUT the first of August, 1831, Abraham 
met Offutt at New Salem as previously ar- 
ranged. His employer had collected a 
quantity of goods at Beardstown, awaiting 
transportation. Until the goods arrived, Abraham had 
nothing to do, but loitered about the town, then num- 
bering only from twelve to fifteen habitations. Some 
of the people recognized him as the ingenious fellow 
who engineered the boat over Rutledge's dam a few 
months before ; and they scraped acquaintance with 
him at once. 

On the day of the election he was loitering about 
the polling place, when one of the judges remarked to 
Minter Graham, the schoolmaster, "We are short of a 
clerk ; what shall we do ? " 

The schoolmaster replied, " Perhaps the tall stranger 
yonder can write ; and maybe he will serve in that 
capacity." 

" Possibly," responded the judge, as he advanced 
towards Abraham, and said : — 

" Can you write ? " It must be remembered that, at 
that time in that region, many people could neither 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 205 

read nor write, so that getting a clerk was not an easy 
matter. 

" Yes, a little," answered Abraham. 

"Will you act as clerk of the election to-day?" 

" Yes, I'll try," was Abraham's modest reply. " I 
will do the best I can, if you so request." 

"Well, it will accommodate us very much if you 
will," continued the judge, conducting the stranger to 
the polls. As yet, Abraham had not announced to any 
one that he was soon to preside over the store of. New 
Salem. 

That he discharged the duties of the office accept- 
ably on that day, we have positive evidence ; for Min- 
ter Graham, the schoolmaster, who was clerk also, 
says : — 

" He performed the duties with great facility, much 
fairness and honesty and impartiality. This was the 
first official act of his life. I clerked with him on the 
same day, and at the same polls. The election-books 
are now in the city of Springfield, Illinois, where they 
can be seen and inspected any day." 

Dr. Nelson of New Salem was about to remove to 
Texas, and had built a flat-boat on which to convey 
his goods and family thither. He was ready to start 
when Abraham was waiting for the arrival of Offutt's 
merchandize. The Sangamon river was at best a tur- 
bulent stream, and was then swollen to overflowing, 
so that the doctor required a pilot to Beardstown. 
Some one suggested to him the young fellow who took 
the boat over Rutledge's dam ; and Abraham was ac- 
cordingly engaged. He piloted the flat-boat success- 
fully to Beardstown, although he said the river over- 



206 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

flowed its banks so unprecedentedly for that season of 
the year, that he sometimes floated over the prairie, 
three miles from the channel. At Beardstown he re- 
ceived his pay, and left the doctor to run down the 
Illinois while he returned on foot to New Salem. 

On the arrival of Offutt's merchandize, the inhabi- 
tants of the .village understood what the tall stranger's 
business was in town. For Abraham proceeded at 
once to unpack the goods, and arrange them for ex- 
hibition in the store. There were groceries, dry goods, 
hardwares, stonewares, earthenwares, cups and saucers, 
plates, knives and forks, boots and shoes, coffee, tea, 
sugar, molasses, butter, gunpowder, tobacco, with other 
articles too numerous to mention, including the in- 
evitable whiskey, which nearly everybody except Abra- 
ham considered indispensable. 

.Within a few days Abraham was well under way 
with Offutt's commercial enterprise. The new goods 
drew customers, and the new clerk attracted attention. 
He was "jokey," agreeable and social, "worth a dozen 
such fellers as Offutt's other man," as one of the citi- 
zens put it. 

Offutt's business elsewhere did not allow him to 
remain at New Salem, though he was there long 
enough to risk another venture. He leased the mill 
of Cameron and Rutledge at the foot of the hill, and 
put it in charge of Abraham along with the store. At 
the same time he hired William G. Green for assistant 
clerk in the store, that Abraham might divide his time 
between the two enterprises. 

Offutt was a great talker, and some people said he 
was "rattle-brained" and "harum-scarum." But no 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 207 

one claimed that Abraham was like him, not even 
Offutt himself, for the latter was wont to magnify the 
abilities and fidelity of his clerk extravagantly. His 
confidence in him was well-nigh boundless, and he 
drew largely upon the dictionary for words to express 
his admiration of the new storekeeper. He did not 
hesitate to say, " Abe knows more than any man in 
the United States." If confronted by any one who 
dared to dispute his assertion, he would supplement 
his statement by another : " Abe will be President of 
the United States some time. Now remember what 
I say." Between engineering the boat over Rutledge's 
dam and the eulogiums of Offutt, Abraham was quite 
grandly introduced to the inhabitants of New Salem. 
It is not strange that he entered upon his labors there 
with flying colors, causing the store to become the 
centre of attraction in that township. New customers 
were multiplied, and old ones became even more 
reliable patrons. 

Then, in Illinois, the merchant of the town was 
second to no citizen in importance. Abraham stepped 
at once into this position of notoriety ; and then, in 
addition, his knowledge, affability, and uprightness, 
contributed to make him a still more important per- 
sonage. 

" The best feller we've had in the store yet," 
remarked Jason Duncan to a companion named 
Carman ; "and he knows a thing or two." 

" Not so much as Offutt thinks he does," replied 
Carman ; "but it's fun to hear him talk." 

"And he is so accommodating and honest;" con- 
tinued Duncan. " Mother says she'd trust him with 



208 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

anything because he's so honest. She paid him a few 
cents too much, and he brought it back to her." 

"Not many on 'em who'd do that," replied Carman. 
/ " Every body says that he gives Scriptur' weight and 

measure." 

"And he is none of your high-fly gentry," added 
Duncan, "if he does keep store. He knows more in 
half an hour than Offutt's other man did in a week." 

"Yes, and he's drawing customers that haven't 
traded there before, just because he does the thing 
that is right. Everybody knows that he won't lie nor 
cheat ; and they believe just what he says, and they 
like to trade with him on that account." 

"Offutt was a fortunate man to get him to keep his 
store," continued Duncan. "It will be money in his 
pocket." 

"And he seems to attend to the business just as 
closely as he would if it was his own," said Carman ; 
" he is there early and late, and he is always reading 
when he has nothing else to do." 

"That's because he is honest," replied William; 
"a dishonest clerk wouldn't care whether the busi- 
ness prospered or not, nor whether people were 
pleased or not. Offutt is off so much that he would 
not know whether a clerk was faithful or not, and 
it's lucky for him that he hit upon Abe as he did." 

"And it's about as lucky for us. I tell you how 
'tis : that store is now just about the best place to 
go to that there is anywhere about. Abe is the 
greatest fellow on stories that I ever heard, and 
many of them are real facts of histry. You ought to 
hear him tell about Washington and Franklin and 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 209 

Clay, as he did the other day. He knows a heap 
more about such things than any body about here." 

Two or three incidents in this place will show what 
reason existed for such discussions as the foregoing 
concerning Abraham. 

One day he sold a bill of goods to Mrs. Duncan, 
amounting to two dollars and six cents. On running 
over his account again in the evening, he found that 
Mrs. Duncan paid him six cents too much. Imme- 
diately on closing the store and locking the door for 
the night, he started for Mrs. Duncan's house, more 
than two miles away, to carry the six cents to her. 
He slept better that night for the walk and honesty. 

On another occasion a woman came into the store 
late in the evening, just as he was closing, for half a 
pound of tea. The tea was weighed and delivered, and 
he left for the night. On returning in the morning he 
noticed a four-ounce weight was on the scales, instead 
of an eight-ounce ; and he knew at once that he had 
given the customer a quarter of a pound of tea, instead 
of a half pound. He weighed another quarter of a 
pound, closed the store, and delivered the tea to the 
woman, before commencing the labors of the day. 
Such acts of uprightness won universal confidence ; 
and they formed the subject of conversation in many 
social gatherings. 

One day a bully entered the store when Abraham 
was waiting upon two or three female customers. He 
belched out profanity and vulgarity, regardless of the 
presence of ladies. Abraham leaned over the counter, 
and whispered, " Shut up ; don't talk so in the pres- 
ence of ladies." 



2IO PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The fellow was too full of whiskey to be suppressed 
in that way, and he became more profane and vulgar 
than before. 

"I'd like to see the man who'll stop me from saying 
what I'm a mind to. I've wanted to thrash you for a 
long time." 

Abraham simply replied, " Wait until these ladies 
have gone, and I'll satisfy you." 

The bully was raving ; and the ladies soon retired. 
" Now," exclaimed Abraham, springing over the 
counter, "we'll see whether you'll talk such stuff in 
this store before ladies." 

" Come on, long-legs," the bully shouted. 

" If you must be whipped, I may as well do it as any 
other man," continued Abraham, as he collared the 
fellow, and put him out of doors. The bully grappled 
with him, whereupon Abraham threw him upon his 
back, and, snatching a handful of smart-weed, rubbed 
it into his face until the fellow bellowed with pain, and 
promised to behave. Then Abraham allowed him to 
get up ; and showed his real kindness of heart by get- 
ting water and washing his face, to relieve him of his 
distress. The outcome of this affair was, that the bully 
was a better man himself from that time, and be- 
came a fast friend of Abraham, who was as much of a 
stickler for politeness to ladies as he was for honesty 
to all. 

Minter Graham, the schoolmaster, was very intimate 
with Abraham. He was in the store one day when 
Abraham said to him : 

" I want to study English grammar; I never did." 

"You've not much time for it, I judge," replied 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 211 

Graham. " Between mill and store, your time is pretty 
well occupied." 

" Well, I have some leisure moments on some days, 
and can always find time at night when folks are in 
bed." 

" You propose to turn night into day?" responded 
Graham, inquiringly. "Too much of such business 
will wear you out?" 

" I'll risk it if I can get a grammar," replied Abra- 
ham. " The trouble is to find a grammar about here." 

" I know where there is one," said Graham. 

"Where?" 

" Six miles from here, at Vaner's, is a copy of Kirk- 
ham's Grammar." 

" I'll buy or borrow it before I'm much older," re- 
marked Abraham. "The time may come when I may 
want to use it." 

" If you ever expect to go before the public in any 
capacity, it will be a good thing for you," responded 
Graham. At this time, Graham had inferred from 
certain remarks of Abraham that he was looking for- 
ward to a more public career. 

The result of this interview was, that, Abraham 
walked six miles and borrowed the grammar, the study 
of which he commenced at once, improving leisure 
moments in the store, and sitting up late at night to 
pursue his task. 

The grammar rather interfered with the good time 
young men had with Abraham in the store. Instead 
of spending leisure moments in entertaining the com- 
pany, Kirkham's Grammar entertained him. Lamon 
says, " Sometimes when business was not particularly 



212 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

brisk, he would lie under a shade-tree in front of the 
store, and pore over the book ; at other times, a cus- 
tomer would find him stretched on the counter intently 
engaged the same way. But the store was a bad place 
for study ; and he was often seen quietly slipping out 
of the village, as if he wished to avoid observation, 
when, if successful in getting off alone, he would spend 
hours in the woods, 'mastering a book,' or in a state 
of profound abstraction. He kept up his old habit of 
sitting up late at night ; but, as lights were as neces- 
sary to his purpose as they were expensive, the village 
cooper permitted him to sit in his shop, where he 
burnt the shavings, and kept a blazing fire to read by, 
when every one else was in bed. The Greens lent him 
books ; the schoolmaster gave him instructions in the 
store, on the road, or in the meadows ; every visitor to 
New Salem who made the least pretensions to scholar- 
ship was waylaid by Abe, and required to explain 
something which he could not understand. The result 
of it all was, that the village and the surrounding coun- 
try wondered at his growth in knowledge, and he soon 
became as famous for the goodness of his understand- 
ing as for the muscular power of his body, and the 
unfailing humor of his talk." 

Kirkham's Grammar appears to have given him a 
new impulse after knowledge ; and his companions felt 
that they lost considerable enjoyment in consequence. 
Some of them had a poor opinion of Kirkham. 

"Studying grammar, yet," remarked Alley in a con- 
temptuous way. 

" Yes ; I want to know something about it. I never 
did." 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 21 3 

"Nor I, and that ain't the worst on't;" and Alley- 
laughed as he said it. 

"Well, I intend to know a little of it," added Abra- 
ham. " It is rather dry, but I am determined to master 
it, if I can. I want, at least, to discover whether I am 
a common noun or not." 

"You're an icncommon noun, Abe," said Alley, 
meaning to compliment his friend, at the same time 
that he got off a pun. 

" Your word for it." 

"Of course, my word for it. But I am quite sure 
that if there is anything in that book, you will get it 
out." 

" But really, Alley, this is a very important study, 
and I think that every one ought to understand it, if 
they can." 

" Not many know anything about it." 

" And that does not prove that it is useless. There 
are a great many things of importance that many 
people know nothing about." 

" That's so ; but most people have got along without 
it. My father and mother never studied it in their 
lives, and I never did, and we've got along well enough 
so far without it." 

" Perhaps you would have got along better with it. 
I've learned enough already to be of great service to 
me, and I intend to know more yet." 

"But it is only a little time that you get here," sug- 
gested Alley. "Just as you get at it somebody comes. 
I don't think much of that." 

"We don't all think alike," responded Abraham. 

"That's a fact; I'm pretty sure that if you thought 



214 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

as I do, you wouldn't be troubling your brains over 
that grammar." 

" Perhaps nobody else would, and the ' King's Eng- 
lish' would be shockingly murdered. We should 
have another Babel almost." 

" How's that ? For the life of me, I can't see any 
particular good that comes of studying grammar." 

"That is because you do not know even the defini- 
tion of it," replied Abraham. "Grammar is the art 
of speaking and writing the English language with 
propriety. And that shows what good it does." 

" Perhaps it does." 

" Of course it does, whether you can see it or not ; 
and I am willing to study for it by day and night." 

" I should think it was about enough to study by 
day, and let the nights go," said Alley, demurely. 

"There is where we don't think alike again. It 
would take me a long time to master this grammar, 
if I should study only by leisure moments in the 
daytime. I have .used up from two to three hours 
over it every night." 

"Just like you, Abe." 
. "Just like every poor fellow like me, who must do 
so, or know little or nothing. Dr. Franklin carried a 
book in his pocket, to study when he could, and he 
kept one by his side in the printing-office to read 
every minute he had to spare." 

"How do you know that? Were you there ? " and 
Alley's roguishness appeared in his expressive eye. 

"Probably," answered Abraham, in the same vein 
of remark. 

"But did you ever read the Life of Dr. Franklin?" 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 215 

"Certainly, several years ago ; and if he had not 
done just what you think is quite foolish, he would 
have made candles all his life." 

" And that would be shedding light on the world, 
I'm sure," said Alley, with an attempt at punning. 
"Lucky that somebody was willing to make candles." 

But no bantering or pleas for sport could separate 
Abraham from his grammar. Kirkham was his boon 
companion in a more important sense than Green, 
Duncan, Alley, Carman, Herndon, and all the rest of 
the New Salem associates. 

It became customary for the citizens to take their 
visitors over to Offutt's store to introduce them to 
Abraham, of whom the whole village were proud. 
Richard Yates came to town to visit friends, and they 
took him over to the store to make Abraham's 
acquaintance. This was the Richard Yates, who, 
subsequently, became famous as a public man. He 
became Governor of Illinois when Abraham became 
President of the United States, and did noble service 
for the country in conquering the "Southern Re- 
bellion." Abraham was soon engaged in close con- 
versation upon various subjects, and while they were 
talking, Alley and Yates' friend left. 

The dinner-time arrived before they were aware 
that nearly an hour had passed since they were in- 
troduced to each other. Abraham invited his new 
acquaintance to dine with him, and they proceeded 
to the house where he boarded — a low, rough, log- 
house. 

" Aunt Lizzie," said Abraham, " I have brought 
some company home to dinner." 



2l6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" I'm glad of it, Abe, if you'll take me as you find 
me," replied the old lady, addressing her remark 
partly to Abraham, and partly to the visitor. 

" No apologies are necessary," said Yates. 

" No, none at all," added Abraham. 

The dinner was on the table, and it was a very 
plain one. There was plenty of bread, and milk 
enough for the company, and the addition of an- 
other bowl and spoon provided a dinner for visitor 
and all. 

There were quite a number of members of the family, 
boarders and children, and the aged matron waited 
upon the table, pouring the milk, and passing a 
brimming bowl to each. When Abraham was waited 
upon, by some mishap, his bowl slipped and rolled 
over upon the floor, dashing it to pieces, and covering 
the floor with its contents. 

" O dear me ! " exclaimed the old lady, in great 
trouble ; " that was all my fault." 

" Perhaps not," said Abraham. 

" It surely was," she answered. " I am so care- 
less." 

" Well, Aunt Lizzie, we'll not discuss whose fault 
it is," continued Abraham; "only if it don't trouble 
you, it don't trouble me." 

" That's you, Abe, sure," replied Aunt Lizzie. 
"You're ready to comfort a body." 

"A very good trait," said Yates, who was both 
amused and enlightened by the accident. 

" Never mind, Aunt Lizzie," continued Abraham, 
" you have the worst of it ; but I am really sorry that 
your bowl is broken. I don't care so much for the 



IN A PIONEER STORE. . 21 7 

milk, as there is plenty more where that came from. 
Much worse things happen sometimes." 

By this time Aunt Lizzie had another bowl filled for 
Abraham, and the company proceeded to eat their 
dinner, while the old lady gathered up the fragments 
of the broken bowl, and wiped up the floor. 

Here Abraham exhibited a trait of character for 
which he was distinguished from boyhood. He dis- 
liked to make trouble for any one, and wanted to see 
all persons at ease. Hence he was accommodating, 
never disposed to find fault, inclined to overlook the 
mistakes and foibles of others. Also, his readiness 
to assist the needy, and comfort the distressed and 
unfortunate, proceeded in part from this quality. 
It was made up of gentlemanly bearing, affability, 
generosity, and a true regard for the welfare and 
happiness of others. A rare character is this, though 
it is always needed, and is popular wherever it is 
appreciated. 

We were absorbed in the discussion of Abraham 
and Alley about the grammar, and were inter- 
rupted by the arrival of Yates, in consequence of 
which the conversation was broken off. We will only 
add, that Abraham became a very good grammarian 
by dint of perseverance. He did not cast aside the 
old grammar until he had mastered it, and it was all 
accomplished while he was the most faithful clerk 
that the store at New Salem ever had. He found 
time enough at odd moments during the day, and 
took enough out of his sleeping hours at night, 
within the space of a few months, to acquire all t.he 
knowledge of grammar that he ever possessed. 



2l8 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

We should say, however, that his companion, 
William Green, rendered him assistance in this 
study. William had some knowledge of grammar, 
and he cheerfully aided Abraham all that he could. 
The latter always said that William taught him 
grammar, although William still affirms "that he 
seemed to master it, as it were, by intuition." 

It is probable that Kirkham's Grammar laid the 
foundation, in part, of Abraham's future character. 
It taught him the rudiments of his native language, 
and thus opened the golden gate of knowledge. 
There is much in his experience at this point to 
remind us of that of Alexander Murray, the world- 
renowned linguist. His father was too poor to send 
him to school, or to provide him with books. The 
Bible, and a catechism containing the alphabet, were 
all the volumes in the family, and the latter Alex- 
ander was not allowed to see except on the Sabbath. 
During the week his father would draw the letters on 
the back of an old wool-card " with the black end of 
an extinguished heather-stem or root, snatched from 
the fire." In this way he learned the alphabet, and 
became a reader. At twelve years of age a friend 
presented him with a copy of Salmon's Grammar, 
which he mastered in an incredibly short period ; and 
here commenced his progress in earnest. He bor- 
rowed a Latin grammar and mastered it. Then a 
French grammar was studied with success. Then the 
Greek was taken in hand, and thus on till all the 
Oriental and Northern languages were familiar to 
him. And the study of Salmon's Grammar laid the 
foundation for all this. That was the key to the vast 



IN A PIONEER STORE. 219 

treasures of knowledge that were opened before him. 
By making himself master of that, he unlocked the 
temple of wisdom. 

And so the grammar that Abraham studied ex- 
erted a great influence upon his character and 
destiny. 




CHAPTER XVII. 

STILL A CLERK. 

|HERE was a "gang " of young and middle- 
aged men in New Salem, called the " Clary 
Grove Boys," who had become a terror to 
the people. They were never more flour- 
ishing than they were when Abraham became a citizen 
of the town. They prided themselves upon their 
strength and courage, and had an established custom 
of " initiating " new comers of the male sex by giving 
them a flogging. Perhaps they were no more ma- 
licious than a class of college students who perform 
similar operations upon Freshmen, though they were 
rougher and more immoral. Such " gangs " existed 
in different parts of the West at that time, a coalition 
of ignorance, rowdyism and brute force. One writer 
says of the " Clary Grove Boys " : — 

" Although there never was under the sun a more 
generous parcel of ruffians, a stranger's introduction 
was likely to be the most unpleasant part of his ac- 
quaintance with them. In fact, one of the objects of 
their association was to ' initiate or naturalize new- 
comers,' as they termed the amiable proceedings 
which they took by way of welcoming any one am- 



STILL A CLERK. 221 

bitious of admittance to the society of New Salem. 
They first -bantered the gentleman to run a foot-race, 
jump, pitch the mall, or wrestle ; and if none of these 
propositions seemed agreeable to him, they would re- 
quest to know what he would do in case another gen- 
tleman should pull his nose or squirt tobacco-juice in 
his face. If he did not seem entirely decided in his 
views as to what should properly be done in such a 
contingency, perhaps he would be nailed in a hogs- 
head and rolled down New Salem hill ; perhaps his 
ideas would be brightened by a brief ducking in the 
Sangamon ; or perhaps he would be scoffed, kicked 
and cuffed by a number of persons in concert, until 
he reached the confines of the village, and then turned 
adrift as being unfit company for the people of that 
settlement. If, however, the stranger consented to 
engage in a tussle with one of his persecutors, it was 
usually arranged that there should be ' foul play,' with 
nameless impositions and insults, which would inevi- 
tably change the affair into a fight ; and then if the 
subject of all these practices proved to be a man of 
mettle, he would be promptly received into their 
society, and in all probability would never have better 
friends on earth than the roystering fellows who had 
contrived his torments." 

These " ruffians " had not " initiated " Abraham 
for some reason. Perhaps a wholesome recollection 
of his strength, courage and tact in engineering the 
boat over Rutledge's dam, or the extravagant state- 
ments of Offutt concerning his marvellous achieve- 
ments, had restrained them. At any rate they did 
not molest him, until one day, when Bill Clary had 



222 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

a dispute with Offutt in his store, and both became 
exasperated. Bill exclaimed : 

" Jack Armstrong can lick Abe easy as a boy knows 
his father." Jack was the strongest man of the 
" gang," and perhaps the most ignorant. 

" You don't know what you are talking about, Bill," 
retorted Offutt ; " he could duck the whole Clary 
Grove crew in the Sangamon, before Jack Armstrong 
could get up after he'd laid him on his back." 

" I'll bet ten dollars on that," shouted Bill. " The 
fact is, Abe wouldn't dare to risk a fight with Jack." 

"The whole of you are blowers and cowards," re- 
sponded Offutt, angrily. "There's more' in Abe's 
little finger than the whole of you have got in your 
soul and body." 

The knowledge of this hot interview spread like 
wildfire, and the " Clary Grove boys " would not con- 
sent to peace any longer. " Jack Armstrong must 
wrestle with Abe," and settle the vital question with 
" ruffians." They proposed all sorts of bets, staking 
money, whiskey and what not upon the issue. 

Soon the proposition from the " Clary Grove Boys " 
came direct to Abraham, and he answered : 

" I must decline such a trial with Jack." 

"Then you are not the man to live in New Salem 
longer," shouted one. 

" Perhaps not," replied Abraham, with a quizzical 
look, as if he meant to say, "that is none of your 
business." 

" We'll duck you in the Sangamon," exclaimed an- 
other. 

" Whether you do or not," answered Abe, " I tell 



STILL A CLERK. 223 

you that I never tussle and scuffle, and I will not. I 
don't like this woolling and pulling." 

" Don't, hey ! " shouted one of the number, at the 
same time pulling Abe's nose. 

" Be careful ; not too familiar," said Abraham in a 
warning manner. 

Thus the provocations were multiplied until Abra- 
ham, seeing that the only way of settling the difficulty 
was tc lay Jack upon his back, consented to wrestling. 
They took side holds, and presently Abraham, having 
the advantage by reason of his long legs and arms, 
lifted Jack completely from the ground, and, swinging 
him about, thought to lay him on his back, but Jack 
came down upon his feet squarely and firmly. 

"Now, Jack," said Abraham, "let's quit; I can't 
throw you, and you can't throw me." 

" No, Jack, don't give up," shouted Bill Clary ; 
"Abe's begging for quarter now." Bill supposed 
that Abraham's courage was failing him, or else it was 
the plan of the gang to play foul. Be this as it may, 
Jack at once broke his hold and adopted the unfair 
method of "legging," whereupon Abraham seized him 
by the throat, and lifting him from the ground, and 
holding him at arm's length, shook him like a child. 
The astonished ruffians saw that their champion was 
worsted, and they cried : — 

"Fight, Jack, fight!" 

No doubt all of them would have attacked Abraham 
had Jack led off. But the latter saw little encourage- 
ment in continuing a contest with a man who could 
hold him out at arm's length by the throat ; and the 
moment Abraham relinquished his hold, Jack grasped 



224 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

his hand in friendship, and declared that " Abe was the 
the best feller that ever broke into their settlement." 
Their friendship became almost like that of David and 
Jonathan ; and from that moment the sway of the 
" Clary Grove Boys " was broken in New Salem. Abra- 
ham did not hesitate to denounce their acts publicly ; 
and others soon joined them in their hostility to such 
ruffianism. The result was, that the gang gradually 
faded out, and quite a number of them became respect- 
able citizens. Abraham's great strength and kindness 
of heart did more to reform the scoundrels than a 
missionary from New England could have done. 

Everybody now became as enthusiastic over Abra- 
ham as Offutt was. 

"I told you so," said the latter. "I've seen some- 
thing of the world, and, I tell you, his like I never saw." 

There was no one to dispute Offutt now. There 
was an end to all riotous proceedings ; for Abraham 
declared that such ruffianly conduct should be stopped, 
and some of the citizens were bold enough to back 
him. Even Jack Armstrong promised him assistance. 
Abraham's influence became regnant in New Salem. 
He was even appealed to by neighbors to settle diffi- 
culties, so that he wore the honors of "peacemaker" 
in Illinois as he did in Indiana. 

It was in New Salem that Abraham won the soubri- 
quet " Honest Abe," which he carried through life. 
The public confidence in his integrity and fairminded- 
ness was such that he was usually chosen for umpire 
in all games and trials where two sides enlisted. And 
finally, he became in so great demand in this line, that 
both sides, in those friendly contests, made him judge. 



STILL A CLERK. 225 

An incident illustrates how strong a friend Jack 
Armstrong became to Abraham. A stranger came 
into town, and he proved to be a kind of bully, and got 
into a difficulty with Jack. 

" You are a coward and a liar," said Jack. 

" You'll find out whether I am or not," exclaimed 
the stranger. 

" You're a coward and a liar, I say," shouted Jack, 
more loudly and defiantly, while the stranger backed 
towards a wood-pile as Jack advanced. 

Before Jack perceived the purpose of the stranger, 
the latter seized a stick of wood, and struck him such 
a blow as to bring him to the ground. Jack recovered 
himself in a moment, and was about to leap upon his 
antagonist, when Abraham, who was near, interfered, 
saying, — 

" I wouldn't, Jack ; it won't do you any good." 

" I'll thrash the rascal," retorted Jack with wrath. 

" No, Jack ; we've done with that kind of business 
in New Salem, you know," Abraham continued. 

" But he insulted me." 

" And what did you say to him ? " inquired Abraham. 
The question mollified Jack's wrath somewhat, for he 
began to get his eyes open. 

" I called him a coward and a liar," replied Jack. 

" Well, suppose you were a stranger, in a strange 
place, and a man should call you a coward and a liar, 
what would you do ? " 

" Thrash him terribly," answered Jack. 

" Then this man has done no more to you than you 
would have done to him," suggested Abraham. 

" That's so," responded Jack, as if he saw the point 



226 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

clearly. "It's all right, Abe." And turning to the 
stranger, he added, "Give us your hand ;" and suiting 
the action to his words, he took the hand of the 
stranger, and declared himself a friend, supplementing 
his pledge of friendship with an invitation to " take a 
drink," according to the custom of the "Clary Grove 
Boys." 

Offutt came into the store one afternoon perplexed 
as to the disposition of a large drove of hogs he had 
purchased. He had no pen large enough to contain 
them. 

"Build one," said Abraham promptly. 

"Too much work; take too long," replied Offutt. 

" It's more work to be without a pen when you need 
a larger one," was Abraham's suggestive answer. 

" Can't get anybody to build it," continued Offutt. 

" I can build it myself," said Abraham. 

" What can't you do ? " answered Offutt. 

"There are a great many things I can't do; but I 
can build a pig-pen," Abraham replied with a smile. 

" Well, go at it, then, and I'll help William about 
the store and look after the mill," was Offutt's quick 
decision. 

Abraham went into the woods and cut down the 
trees, and split rails enough to make a pen sufficiently 
large to hold a thousand hogs. 

During the time that Abraham served Offutt, he 
attended a debating club. Dr. Holland says : — 

" During this year he was also much engaged with 
debating clubs, often walking six or seven miles to 
attend them. One of these clubs held its meetings 
at an old store-house in New Salem. He used to call 



STILL A CLERK. 22J 



these exercises 'practising polemics.' As these clubs 
were composed principally of men of no education 
whatever, some of their 'polemics' are remembered 
as the most laughable of farces. His favorite news- 
paper, at this time, was the Louisville Journal, a paper 
which he received regularly by mail, and paid for dur- 
ing a number of years when he had not money enough 
to dress decently. He liked its politics, and was par- 
ticularly delighted with its wit and humor, of which 
he had the keenest appreciation. When out of the 
store he was always busy in the pursuit of knowledge. 
One gentleman, who met him during this period, says 
that the first time he saw him he was lying on a 
trundle-bed, covered with books and papers, and rock- 
ing a cradle with bis foot. Of the amount of uncov- 
ered space between the extremities of his trousers and 
the top of his socks which this informant observed, 
there shall be no mention. The whole scene, how- 
ever, was entirely characteristic — Lincoln reading and 
studying, and at the same time helping his landlady 
by quieting her child." 

The question whether the Sangamon river was 
navigable or not had been under discussion several 
years, and reached the crisis while Abraham was in 
the employ of Offutt, or just after he closed his labors 
for him. 

"The 'Talisman' is chartered for the experiment," 
said a citizen of New Salem to Abraham; "and you 
ought to be her captain." 

" It will take a man of more experience than I have 
had to run her up the river," was Abraham's modest 
answer. 



228 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Well, there's nobody here that understands the 
business better than you do," continued the citizen. 
" Will you undertake if you are wanted ?" 

" I'll try, and do the best I can," was Abraham's 
characteristic reply. " I have tried this river consid- 
erably with a flat-boat." 

" That is what I thought, and for that reason you 
ought to pilot the ' Talisman ' ; and I think that is the 
general opinion." 

" I am willing to undertake it if it is thought best," 
Abraham added. 

The result was that he was sent, with others, to 
meet the steamer at Beardstown, and pilot her up. 
There was great excitement over the experiment, and 
the inhabitants came from far and near to witness the 
trial from the banks of the river. Abraham took his 
place at the helm, and piloted her with comparative 
ease and safety as far as the New Salem clam, the 
people gathered upon the banks of the river frequently 
cheering at the top of their voices. Here it was neces- 
sary to remove a part of the dam to let the steamer 
through. She ran up to Bogue's mill, when the 
rapidly falling water admonished the successful cap- 
tain that she must be turned down stream or be left 
there for the season. No time was lost in beginning 
the return trip, which was accomplished at the slow rate 
of three or four miles a day, " on account of the high 
wind from the prairie." J. R. Herndon was sent for, 
and he says : " I was sent for, being an old boatman, 
and I met her some twelve or thirteen miles above 
New Salem. . , , We got to Salem the second day 
after I went on board. When we struck the dam she 



STILL A CLERK. 229 



hung. We then backed off, and threw the anchor 
over the dam, and tore away part of the dam ; 
then, raising steam, ran her over the first trial. 
As soon as she was over, the company that char- 
tered her was done with her. I think the captain 
gave Lincoln forty dollars to run her down to Beards- 
town. I am sure I got forty dollars to continue on 
her until we landed at Beardstown. We that went 
with her walked back to New Salem." 

While Abraham was in the employ of Offutt, the 
latter made some unprofitable ventures, by reason of 
which he became pecuniarily embarrassed. His mill 
enterprise did not prove as successful as he anticipated, 
and other speculations left him considerably out of 
pocket. Fortune ceased to smile upon any of his 
enterprises, and his difficulties multiplied from week 
to week, until he failed, closed his store, shut down his 
mill, and left Abraham without employment. It was, 
however, a period of very great advancement to 
Abraham. He had acquired much knowledge of mer- 
cantile business, had become familiar with grammar, 
had read many books, made many friends, and im- 
proved himself generally. Dr. Holland says, that, 
when he terminated his labors for Offutt, " every one 
trusted him. He was judge, arbitrator, referee, 
umpire, authority in all disputes, games and matches 
of man-flesh and horse-flesh ; a participator in all quar- 
rels ; everybody's friend ; the best-natured, the most 
sensible, the best-informed, the most modest and un- 
assuming, the kindest, gentlest, roughest, strongest, 
best young fellow in all New Salem and the region 
round about." 




CHAPTER XVIII. 

ON THE WAR-PATH. 

|HE Black Hawk War was causing great 
excitement in Illinois and other Western 
states when Abraham closed his labors with 
Offutt. Not long afterward, the Governor 
of Illinois called for four regiments of volunteers. 

" I shall enlist," said Abraham to his intimate friend 
and companion, William Green, as soon as the news 
reached New Salem. 

" I shall if you do," responded William. 

"Well, I shall do it, honest. Nothing else on hand 
now. Besides, Black Hawk is one of the most treacher- 
ous Indians on the footstool, and he ought to be shot. 
It is not more than a year ago, and hardly that, that he 
entered into a treaty ; and he was to keep his people 
on the other side of the Mississippi, and now he has 
crossed to make war on the whites." 

"Real Indian, that is," continued William; "the 
only way to deal with an Indian is to shoot him." 

" I don't know about that ; it's the only way to treat 
Black Hawk, though, — a cunning, artful warrior, who 
is in his element when he can massacre the whites," 
added Abraham. 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 23 1 

" They expect to make short work of it, or the 
governor would have called for volunteers for more 
than thirty days," suggested William. 

" They may call for them again after the expiration 
of thirty days, and the same volunteers may re-enlist. 
I shall enlist for the war, whether it is thirty days or 
thirty months." Abraham meant just what he said, as 
the sequel will show. 

"Clary Grove Boys" were now the fast friends of 
Abraham, and all were eager to enlist with him. Other 
young men, and older men, also, were ready for the war. 
In consequence of the general interest awakened, Abra- 
ham said : — 

"We can raise a company in New Salem." 

"True as you live," answered Herndon. 

" We must be about it in a hurry if we are going to 
do it," remarked Green. 

The whole town became fired with military ardor, in 
consequence of Abraham's leadership, and the result 
was that a recruiting office was opened in New Salem. 
Within a few days the company was full, Abraham 
being the first to enlist ; and the choice of officers 
became the exciting topic. However, the officers were 
not elected at New Salem ; but the volunteers marched 
to Bushville, in Schuyler County, where the election 
took place. 

There were only two candidates for captain, Abra- 
ham and Fitzpatrick, the owner of the saw-mill at 
Spring Creek. He sawed the lumber for Abraham 
when he built the boat for Offutt, and treated his 
customer rudely. Fitzpatrick was a popular man, but 
there was a small show for him in a race with Abraham. 



232 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The method of electing captain was peculiar ; per- 
haps the best method for that place, under the circum- 
stances. The two candidates were required to take 
their positions opposite each other, at a suitable dis- 
tance ; and, at a given signal, each volunteer went 
to the one whom he desired for his captain. Three- 
fourths of the whole number at once took their stand 
with Abraham ; and, when those who first went to 
Fitzpatrick saw the overwhelming majority for Abra- 
ham, one by one they left the former and joined the 
latter, until but one or two stood with Fitzpatrick. 

"I felt bad for Fitzpatrick," said Green; "he was 
the most lonesome-looking fellow I ever saw." 

" He might have known that we shouldn't vote for 
him when Abe is about," remarked Herndon. " He 
was too anxious to serve his country." 

These, and kindred remarks, were bandied about 
after the company had indulged in vociferous cheering, 
that Black Hawk might have heard if he had been 
within a reasonable distance. 

"A speech from the captain," was the imperative 
call from the company ; and Abraham promptly accom- 
modated them to one of his best efforts, in which he 
thanked them for the honor conferred, maintained that 
their choice might have fallen upon one much better 
qualified for the position than himself, and promised 
that he would do the best he could to prove himself 
worthy of their confidence. 

"Captain Lincoln!" exclaimed William Greene, 
addressing Abraham facetiously, and tipping his hat ; 
and, henceforth, "Captain Lincoln" was alone the 
soubriquet by which he was known. 




Interceding k<>r an Indian in thk Black-Hawk War. 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 233 

One incident occurred before the organization of 
this company, which should be rehearsed. It illus- 
trates his temperance principles, at the same time 
that it shows his marvellous strength. Green said 
to a stranger, who happened to be in New Sa- 
lem, — 

" Abe Lincoln is the strongest man in Illinois." 

"I deny it," answered the stranger, immediately 
naming a stronger party. 

" How much can he lift," asked Green. 

" He'll lift a barrel of flour as easily as I can a peck 
of potatoes." 

" Abe can lift two barrels if he could get hold of 
them." 

" Ha ! ha ! ha ! " laughed the man. " You can tell 
a greater story than I can." 

" Great story or not, I will bet that Abe will lift 
a barrel of whiskey, and drink out of the bunghole." 

" Worse yet," replied the man. " I'll bet he can't 
do any such thing." 

" What will you bet ? " 

"I'll bet a good hat; and we'll have him try right 
off, if he will." 

" Agreed," said Green. The truth was he had 
seen Abraham do this very thing, minus the drinking 
part, so that he knew he should win. 

Without delay they sought Abraham, and pro- 
ceeded to the store, where the whiskey was found. 

" I don't think much of the betting part," said 
Abraham, " but I guess I'll help William out of the 
scrape, though he won't have much chance to wear 
the hat yet awhile, if he is going to war with me." 



234 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Well, if you can do what he says you can, I want 
to see it," said the man. 

" You shall have the privilege," answered Abra- 
ham. 

At once he proceeded to perform the feat, and 
accomplished it with seeming ease. The barrel was 
raised, and a quantity of liquor taken from the bung- 
hole. 

"There it is!" exclaimed Green. " But that is the 
first dram I ever saw you drink in my life, Abe," he 
added, turning to Abraham. 

The words had scarcely escaped his lips, before 
Abraham set down the barrel, and spirted the whis- 
key that was in his mouth upon the floor, at the 
same time replying, " And I haven't drank that, you 
see." 

Green burst into a hearty laugh at this turn of the 
affair, and added, "You are bound to let whiskey 
alone, Abe." 

And this same Green writes to us : " That was the 
only drink of intoxicating liquor I ever saw him take, 
and that he spirted on the floor." 

The stranger was satisfied, as well as astonished. 
He had never seen the like before, and he doubted 
whether he ever should again. He did not know that 
the whole life-discipline through which Abraham 
had passed was suited to develop muscular strength. 
Probably he did not care, since there was the actual 
deed. 

We are interested in it mostly for the determina- 
tion it showed to reject whiskey. The act was in 
keeping with all his previous temperance habits. 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 235 

On the evening after this affair, Abraham was 
alone with his friend William Green, who won the 
aforesaid hat, and he said to him, " William, are you 
in the habit of betting ? " 

" No ; I never bet before in my life, never." 

" Well, I never would again, if I were you. It is 
what unprincipled men will do, and I would set my 
face against it." 

" I didn't see anything very bad in that bet," said 
William. 

" All bets are alike," answered Abraham, " though 
you may not have any bad motives in doing it." 

" I only wanted to convince the man that you could 
lift the barrel." 

" I know it ; but I want you should promise me that 
you will never bet again. It is a species of gambling, 
and nothing is meaner than that." 

" I don't suppose I shall ever do it again." 

" I want you should promise me that you won't," 
continued Abraham, with increased emphasis. " It 
will please your mother to know of so good a reso- 
lution." 

" I will promise you, Abe," answered William, 
grasping his hand, while tears glistened in his eyes. 
And there was true seriousness in this transaction, 
more than might appear to the reader at first view. 
The one who thus pledged himself to Abraham writes 
to us now, in his riper years : " On that night, when 
alone, I wept over his lecture to me, and I have so far 
kept that solemn pledge." 

The New Salem company went into camp at 
Beardstown, from whence, in a few days, they 



236 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

marched to the expected scene of conflict. When 
the thirty days of their enlistment had expired, how- 
ever, they had not seen the enemy. They were dis- 
banded at Ottawa, and most of the volunteers 
returned. But a new levy being called for, Abraham 
re-enlisted as a private. Another thirty days ex- 
pired, and the war was not over. His regiment was 
disbanded, and again, the third time, he volunteered. 
He was determined to serve his country as long as the 
war lasted. Before the third term of his enlistment 
had expired, the battle of Bad Axe was fought, which 
put an end to the war. 

He returned home. " Having lost his horse, near 
where the town of Janesville, Wisconsin, now stands, 
he went down Rock River to Dixon in a canoe. 
Thence he crossed the country on foot to Peoria, 
where he again took a canoe to a point on the Illinois 
River, within forty miles of home. The latter dis- 
tance he accomplished on foot." 

Several incidents transpired during his connection 
with the army, which are so expressive of certain 
elements of his character, that we record them here. 
One day an old Indian found his way into camp, pro- 
fessing to be friendly to the whites, and casting him- 
self upon the mercy of Lincoln's soldiers. 

" We came to fight Indians," shouted one of the 
"boys," "and we'll give you cold lead instead of 
mercy." 

" Shoot him ! shoot him ! " cried several voices. 

" A spy ! a spy ! " shouted others. 

The demonstration terrified the Indian, and, in his 
distress, he flung down a crumpled paper that he had 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 237 

been holding in his hand, and begged them to read it. 
Captain Lincoln took it up, and found that it was a 
certificate of character and safe-conduct from General 
Cass, endorsing the Indian as a faithful man who had 
done good for him. 

" A forged document ! " was the cry raised at once. 

" The old savage can't run it on us like that," 
cried Bill Clary, raising his gun in a threatening 
manner. 

" Kill him ! show him no quarter!" cried another of 
the " Clary Grove Boys," several of whom had made 
considerable trouble for their captain by their unruly 
conduct. 

The " boys " were bound to kill the red-skin, and 
were actually rushing upon him when Captain Lincoln 
sprang before him, confronting the assailants, and 
commanding them to desist. 

" You shall not shoot the Indian," he cried, " Gen- 
eral Cass's order must be respected." 

"We will shoot him," yelled a Clary Grove ruffian. 

" Not unless you shoot me," fiercely cried Captain 
Lincoln, towering up to his full height, and covering 
the Indian by his bodily presence. 

His determined manner, resolute and invincible 
spirit, and terrible earnestness, evinced by every motion 
of his body, cowed the "boys," so that they fell back 
sullenly, and desisted from firing the fatal shot. 
Some of them, however, still muttered vengeance in a 
low tone, and finally, one, more defiant than the rest, 
exclaimed : 

" This is cowardly on your part, Lincoln." 

Aroused to the highest pitch of determination by this 



238 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

insolent and unreasonable charge, Captain Lincoln 
shouted : 

" If any of you think I am a coward, let him test it, 
here and now." 

" You are larger and heavier than we are, Lincoln," 
replied one. 

" You can guard against this ; choose your own 
weapons," Captain Lincoln retorted, the unconquerable 
spirit within him manifesting itself through every 
lineament of his face and every gesture. " He never 
appeared so powerful and fearless before," says one 
who was present. Even the most rebellious of the 
"Clary Grove Boys" dared not lift his finger against 
the Indian ; and never more did they associate the 
term "coward " with Lincoln's name. 

In this affair Captain Lincoln's life was in as great 
peril as that of the Indian. One of his biographers 
says : " He often declared that his life and character 
were both at stake, and would probably have been 
lost, had he not at that supremely critical moment for- 
gotten the officer and asserted the man. To have 
ordered the offenders under arrest would have created 
a formidable mutiny ; to have tried and punished them 
would have been impossible. They could scarcely be 
called soldiers ; they were merely armed citizens, with 
a nominal military organization. They were but re- 
cently enlisted, and their term of service was about to 
expire. Had he preferred charges against them, and 
offered to submit their differences to a court of any 
sort, it would have been regarded as an act of personal 
pusillanimity, and his efficiency would have been gone 
forever." 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 239 

Wrestling, jumping, and lifting was a pastime in 
camp, and Captain Lincoln excelled every man in the 
regiment in these feats. His company declared that 
there was not a man in the whole army who was his 
equal as a wrestler ; and they boastfully pitted him 
against the " whole field." This challenge brought 
out a man from another regiment, by the name of 
Thompson, who offered to wrestle with Lincoln. The 
latter's company at once staked money, weapons, and 
outfit, believing that their captain would lay the 
" great Western wrestler," as he was called, on his 
back. 

Captain Lincoln had tussled with Thompson but 
a few minutes when he remarked to his friends, — 

" This is the most powerful man I ever had hold of. 
He will throw me, and you will lose." 

The company urged him on, believing he was more 
than a match for Thompson ; but they were sadly dis- 
appointed when the latter threw their champion flat 
on his back. As, according to the custom, it required 
two out of three falls to settle the contest, they were 
soon struggling again, when both of them came to 
the ground, Thompson on top. In their great disap- 
pointment, Lincoln's men claimed that Thompson was 
thrown as really as their captain, the second time, and 
refused to give up their property staked. This 
brought on a collision with Thompson's friends, and 
they were about to proceed to blows, when Captain 
Lincoln magnanimously stepped in and prevented fur- 
ther trouble. Addressing his men, he said, — 

" Boys, Thompson actually threw me once fair, 
broadly so ; and the second time he threw me fairly, 



240 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

though not apparently so." And he counselled them 
to be honest and accept the inevitable. This was a 
very remarkable example of magnanimity, and served 
to exalt Lincoln still higher, if possible, in the estima- 
tion of all. 

Another incident we will give in the language of 
William Green : " One other word in reference to 
Lincoln's care for the health and welfare of his men, 
and justice to them. Some officers of the United 
States had claimed that the regular army had a pref- 
erence in the rations and pay. Captain Lincoln was 
ordered to do some act which he deemed unauthor- 
ized. He, however, obeyed, but went to the officer 
and said to him, ' Sir, you forget that we are not 
under the rules and regulations of the War Depart- 
ment at Washington ; are only volunteers under the 
orders and regulations of Illinois. Keep in your own 
sphere, and there will be no difficulty ; but resistance 
will hereafter be made to your unjust orders ; and, 
further, my men must be equal in all particulars, in 
rations, arms, camps, etc., to the regular army.' The 
man saw that Lincoln was right, and determined to 
have justice done. Afterwards we were treated 
equally well, and just as the regular army was, in every 
particular. This brave, just, and humane act in behalf 
of the volunteers at once attached officers and rank to 
him, as with hooks of steel." 

Mr. Irwin pays the following deserved tribute to 
Lincoln in the army : " During the campaign Lincoln 
himself was always ready for an emergency. He en- 
dured hardships like a good soldier; he never com- 
plained, nor did he fear danger. When fighting was 



ON THE WAR-PATH. 24 1 

expected, or danger apprehended, Lincoln was the first 
to say 'Let's go.' He had the confidence of every 
man of his company, and they obeyed his orders at a 
word. His company was mostly young men, and full 
of sport." 

The Black Hawk war was not much of a war after 
all, and our hero did not engage directly with the 
enemy face to face. Yet two officers in that war, Col- 
onel Zachary Taylor and Captain Abraham Lincoln, 
subsequently became Presidents of the United States. 

One of the most humorous speeches Abraham Lin- 
coln ever made in Congress had reference to this war. 
General Cass was the Democratic candidate for Presi- 
dent, and certain congressional orators made capital 
out of the General's connection with the Black Hawk 
war. 

Lincoln rose in his seat, and said, among other 
things, " By the way, Mr. Speaker, do you know that I 
am a military hero ? Yes, sir, in the days of the Black 
Hawk war, I fought, bled, and came away. Speak- 
ing of General Cass's career reminds me of my own. 
I was not at Stillman's defeat, but I was about as near 
it as Cass to Hull's surrender ; and like him I saw the 
place very soon afterward. It is quite certain that I 
did not break my sword, for I had none to break ; * 
but I bent my musket pretty badly on one occasion. 
. . . If General Cass went in advance of me in pick- 
ing whortleberries, I guess I surpassed him in charges 
upon the wild onions. If he saw any live", fighting 
Indians, it was more than I did, but I had a good many 

* Lincoln re-enlisted as private, so that he did not carry a 
iword after the term of his company's enlistment expired. 



242 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

bloody struggles with the mosquitoes ; and, although I 
never fainted from loss of blood, I can truly say I was 
often very hungry. ... If I should ever turn 
Democrat, and be taken up as a candidate for the 
Presidency by the Democratic party, I hope they will 
not make fun of me by attempting to make me out a 
military hero." 




CHAPTER XIX. 

UNSOUGHT HONORS. 

|N his return from the Black Hawk war, 
Lincoln took up his abode in the family of 
J. R. Herndon. The people of New Salem 
gave him a hearty welcome, and delighted 
to call him " Captain Lincoln." The Herndon family 
were soon more strongly attached to him than ever. 
" He had one of Herndon's children around with him 
nearly all the time," says an eye-witness. "He was 
at home wherever he went, and made himself wonder- 
fully agreeable to the people he lived with, or hap- 
pened to be visiting," says Mr. Herndon. That his* 
kind and benevolent disposition did not suffer by his 
service in the army is quite evident from a remark of 
Mr. Herndon, " He was kind to the widow and 
orphan, and chopped their wood." 

He was casting about for some employment, where- 
by to earn a livelihood. For some reason, to us 
unknown, the blacksmith's trade attracted his atten- 
tion. 

"What do you think of my learning the black- 
smith's trade ? " he said to his friend, William Green, 
one day. 



244 PIONEER-HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"A blacksmith !" exclaimed William with much sur- 
prise. "That would be quite a descent from Captain 
Lincoln to smithy Lincoln. You are joking, cap'n." 

"Never was more serious in my life, William. A 
blacksmith is of more practical use to the community 
than a captain in an Indian war." 

"But less glory in it," replied Green. "You don't 
seem to understand that war makes heroes, and 
heroes get into political life. Why, Abe, we're going 
to send you to the legislature." 

"None of your bantering, William," Lincoln 
answered, supposing that his friend was joking. "I'm 
talking business." 

" So am I. Haven't you heard, Abe, that the Clay 
men are going to run you for the legislature?" 

"No, nor you. Yesterday I heard the names of 
John T. Stuart, Colonel Taylor and Peter Cartwright, 
named as Jackson candidates ; and nobody would think 
of running me against such men." 

"All that may be, and there may be a half-dozen 
other candidates; but we are going to run you 
against the "whole batch, unless you positively de- 
cline." 

"You are crazy, William, and all the rest of you 
who entertain such a thought. What! run me, 
nothing but a strapping boy, against such men of 
experience and wisdom! Come, now, no more of 
your gammon." 

"Then you won't believe me?" 

"I didn't say so." 

"Well, believe it or not, you will be waited upon by 
older persons than I am, to get your consent." 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 245 

And, sure enough, he was waited upon by several of 
the most influential citizens of New Salem, within 
twenty-four hours thereafter, to ask his consent to run 
as a candidate for the legislature. 

"It will only subject me to ridicule," he said. 

"Why so?" inquired one of the number. 

"For the folly of running against such men as 
Stuart and Cartwright." 

"Not if you beat them." 

" That is impossible. I should not expect to be 
elected, if I should consent to be a candidate." 

"I don't know about that," answered one; "we 
expect to elect you." 

" But I have lived in the county only a few 
months, and am known only in New Salem, while 
the other candidates are known in every part of the 
county. Besides, it is only ten days before the 
election, and there is little time to carry your 
measures." 

" Very true ; but there is a principle involved in 
your nomination, and we shall sustain that, whether 
you are elected or not." 

Here was a point of importance. There were no 
distinct political parties then in the State, as there 
are now. But there were "Jackson men a^id Clay 
men," not to mention others. Abraham was a " Clay 
man," while the majority vote of the county, at the 
previous presidential election, was cast for Jackson. 
In these circumstances there was little prospect that 
the young candidate would be elected. 

Suffice to say that Abraham at last yielded very 
reluctantly, and became a candidate. He was not 



246 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

elected ; but his popularity may be learned from the 
fact that he stood next to the successful candidate, 
and only a few votes behind him. " His own precinct, 
New Salem, gave him 277 votes in a poll of 284," — all 
but seven. No one was more surprised than Abraham 
himself. Although he was not elected, yet the result, 
in the circumstances, was a signal triumph. 

Mr. R. B. Rutledge was the citizen who really 
secured Lincoln's consent to be a candidate. He 
had heard him make a speech before the "New Salem 
Literary Society," on one occasion, which impressed 
him so much that he did not hesitate to say, "Abe 
will make a great man." Of that speech he says: 
"As he rose to speak, his tall form towered above the 
little assembly. Both hands were thrust down deep in 
the pockets of his pantaloons. A perceptible smile at 
once lit up the faces of the audience, for all anticipated 
the relation of some humorous story. But he opened 
up the discussion in splendid style, to the astonish- 
ment of his friends. As he warmed with his subject, 
his hands forsook his pockets and enforced his noble 
thoughts with awkward gestures. He pursued the 
question with reason and argument so pithy that all 
were amazed." The president, at his fireside, after the 
meeting, remarked to his wife, "There is more in 
Abe's head than wit and fun. He is already a fine 
speaker, and all that is needed is culture, to enable 
him to reach the- high place which I believe is in store 
for him." 

While Mr. Rutledge admitted to Abraham that 
there was little or no chance of his election, he assured 
him that the canvass would bring his name prominently 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 247 

before the voters of the county for future use. His 
arguments prevailed with Lincoln. 

Candidates for State offices were obliged to take the 
stump, and declare their sentiments and vindicate 
them. Abraham followed the custom, and made 
several speeches, with the expressed condition, how- 
ever, that "his friends should not laugh at him." His 
first speech was made at Pappsville, about eleven miles 
west of Springfield. It was as follows : — 

"Gentlemen and fellow-citizens, I presume you all 
know who I am. I am humble Abraham Lincoln. I 
have been solicited by many friends to became a can- 
didate for the Legislature. My politics are short and 
sweet : I am in favor of a national bank ; I am in 
favor of the internal improvement system and a high 
protective tariff. These are my sentiments and politi- 
cal principles. If elected, I shall be thankful ; if not, 
it will be all the same." 

The brevity of his speech was the fruit of his 
modesty, which did not fail to captivate his hearers. 
He made several other speeches, and issued an address 
also, of considerable length and real merit, to the voters 
of the county. In closing that address, he said: — 

" Considering the great degree of modesty that 
should always attend youth, it is probable that I have 
been more presuming than becomes me. However, 
upon the subjects of which I have treated, I have 
spoken as I have thought. . . . Every man is said 
to have his peculiar ambition. Whether it be true or 
not, I can say, for one, that I have no other so great 
as that of being truly esteemed of my fellow-men, by 
rendering myself worthy of their esteem." 



248 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

His opponents made fun of his appearance wherever 
he spoke; and it must be confessed that there was 
some occasion for it, judging from the description of 
his dress furnished by his friend, Mr. A. B. Ellis, who 
accompanied him during a part of the campaign. He 
says : " He wore a mixed jeans coat, claw-hammer 
style, short in the sleeves, and bobtail, — in fact, it 
was so short in the tail he could not sit on it, — flax 
and tow linen pantaloons, and a straw hat. I think 
he wore a vest, but do not remember how it looked. 
He then wore pot-metal boots." 

Thoughtful, substantial citizens regarded Abra- 
ham's mode of dress rather complimentary. It 
denoted the absence of pride and vanity to them 
more than an absence of taste. " Abe's no dandy," 
remarked one of his most enthusiastic admirers, 
designing to pay him a high compliment. 

When the labor and excitement of the campaign 
were over, Abraham's pocket was empty. He was, 
therefore, under the necessity of finding " something 
to do." The vote of New Salem convinced him that 
he had plenty of friends there. A citizen remarked, 
referring to his poverty, " Abe has nothing except 
plenty of friends." But he must have work, also. 

" You must stay here," said his friend Green, very 
earnestly. 

" There is no must about it, if there's no work for 
me," answered Lincoln. 

" There'll be enough that you can do, only take 
time for it ; the world wasn't made in a minute." 

" No ; I suppose it took about six days, and if I can 
find employment in that time, I shall be satisfied." 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 249 

"I'll tell you what to do, Abe, — study law: 
you're just the man for it." 

"Whew! I should laugh to see myself trying to 
make a lawyer." 

" Why not be one, I should like to know ? " 

" For the very good reason, that I haven't brains 
enough." 

"Just what I thought you would say. You are 
altogether too sparing of good opinions of your- 
self. You've more brains than half the lawyers in 
Illinois." 

"Perhaps that isn't saying much," replied Abra- 
ham, laughing; "although it is a pretty handsome 
compliment on your part. Much obliged." 

"Well, compliment or not, I have heard a good 
many people say that you ought to be a lawyer." 

" And I have heard one propose that I be a black- 
smith, as I told you ; and I suppose I could swing a 
sledge-hammer equal to any of them." 

" And throw away your talents ? Any fool could 
be a blacksmith." 

"By no means. No man can be successful at any- 
thing unless he is industrious, and has common sense, 
and a good share of perseverance." 

" That's so, I s'pose ; but a blacksmith is the last 
thing I would be if I were in your place. I would like 
to know who ever suggested such an idea to you." 

" My father several years ago ; and less than five 
years ago I came within an ace of putting his advice 
into practice. I almost decided to go at it for life." 

" Ha ! ha ! ha ! " laughed his friend, heartily. 
" Wouldn't you cut a dash donning a leather apron 



250 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

and blowing the blacksmith's bellows, like another Jack 
Smuttyface, as they used to call Jake Tower." 

"An honest calling," answered Lincoln; "and that 
is the main thing. A lawyer can look a little more 
spruce than a son of Vulcan, to be sure ; but a black 
smith can be just as upright, if not a little more so." 

"And what do you mean by 'a little more so'?" 
asked Green. 

" Why, don't you know that nearly everybody sus- 
pects lawyers of trickery, — doing anything for a fee, 
blowing hot or cold for the sake of a case, — shielding 
the meanest culprits as readily as they do the best 
men — and all that sort of thing ?" 

" Not quite so bad as that, Abe. I know that law- 
yers are not over particular, and that is true of a good 
many folks who are not lawyers. If you won't follow 
a calling because there are scapegraces in it, you will 
not choose one right away." 

" Perhaps so ; but no man has any more right to 
defend the wrong because he is a lawyer than he has 
because he is a blacksmith, in my way of thinking." 

" I give it up, Abe ; you've got the case already, and 
I am more convinced than ever that you ought to study 
law." 

"That is, if you are judge and jury," responded 
Lincoln. " But I don't understand why it is that 
people are determined I shall be a lawyer. As many 
as ten months ago, two or three people gave me the 
same advice, though I thought they were half in 
joke." 

" Well, Abe, perhaps you'll get your eyes open, if 
you live long enough, to see what you ought to be," 



UNSOUGH T HONORS. 2$1 

said Green, in a strain of pleasantry. " Not many- 
folks live that have to go to their neighbors to find out 
what they are. By the time you are seven feet high, 
perhaps you will understand." 

" I should think I was pretty near that now, by what 
people say," archly replied Lincoln. 

" I think you are in a fair way to be, if you keep 
on." 

" And I shall be a lawyer by that time, and not be 
fore." And here they parted. 

Lincoln had no intention of being a lawyer, after all 
that his friends had suggested. He had no confidence 
in his abilities for that profession. Indeed, he could 
not see how a young man reared as he was could ex 
pect to enter upon such a" calling. Yet he longed for 
some permanent pursuit, — a life-vocation. He did 
not like this going from one thing to another, and he 
only did it from sheer necessity. He believed that a 
young man should choose a calling, and stick to it with 
unwearied devotion, if he would make anything in the 
world. He wanted to do this ; but what should he 
choose ? He was perplexed, troubled, and- the more 
so, because admiring friends advised him to do" what 
he really supposed was beyond his ability. He under- 
rated his talents, (a very good failing), and all the time 
thought that others were overrating them. Few 
youth and young men suffer in this way. They are 
more apt to injure themselves by too exalted views of 
their talents. Some of the veriest simpletons esteem 
themselves as the wisest and greatest men. Igno- 
rance is more likely to be vain and proud than ripe 
talents and learning. True knowledge is humble. 



252 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Great talents are marked by humility. And so young 
Lincoln did not stand so high in his own estimation as 
he did in the estimation of others. This was the 
case with Sir Humphrey Davy, Nathaniel Bowditch, 
Arkwright, Franklin, Washington, and many others. 
From their youth they were devoid of that vain self- 
confidence which many shallow-brained people pos- 
sess. 

Instead of becoming a blacksmith, however, Abra- 
ham became a merchant. Mr. Herndon, with whom 
he boarded, was running a grocery with one Berry, 
and he sold out his interest to Lincoln. Soon after- 
wards William Green bought out Radford, and imme- 
diately sold his stock of groceries to Lincoln for a 
bonus of one hundred and* fifty dollars, taking Lin- 
coln's note. The name of the firm was " Lincoln & 
Berry." Berry turned out to be an intemperate, 
worthless fellow, embarrassed the business, cheated 
his partner, " cleared out," and left Lincoln with all 
the debts to pay. The settlement left him penniless, 
without a copper to pay his note to Green. "All 
right," said Green ; " don't trouble yourself about me. 
When you are able to pay it you can ; but if you don't, 
it's all the same.' 

Abraham facetiously called it " the national debt," 
and declared that he " should never rest until it was 
paid." And he did not. Green removed to Tennes- 
see before the note was paid, and scarcely expected 
that his friend would ever be able to redeem it. But, 
in 1840, after Abraham -had entered the legal profes- 
sion, the last dollar was paid. 

Being through with his store Abraham was again 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 253 

without employment. To add to his disappointment, 
Mr. Herndon, with whom he boarded, removed from 
town, obliging him to take up his quarters at the 
village "tavern" — a log house with four rooms. 
While waiting for some opening, he devoted himself 
to mental improvement with more earnestness than 
ever. He read Rollin's Ancient History. Gibbon's 
Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, and similar 
works, borrowed of William Green, Minter Graham, 
Bowlin Greene, and other parties. Copies of the 
works of the poets, Burns and Shakespeare, were 
lent him, and Kirkham's Grammar was reviewed, 
also. He was so won by Burns and Shakespeare that 
he committed many of their best productions to 
memory ; and through life, these poets were his 
favorite reading. 

He wrote a careful synopsis of all the books he 
read, in order to treasure the contents in his memory. 
This habit was of inestimable value to him. To it is 
to be traced, in part at least, that clearness of ex- 
pression, and that fund of illustrations and facts, for 
which the public addresses of his ripe manhood were 
distinguished. 

Citizens of New Salem claim, also, that he began 
to study law at this time. There is no reliable evi- 
dence, however, that he began the study of law, with 
the expectation of ever entering the profession, at 
that time. He purchased an old copy of Blackstone, 
or some other law book, at an auction in Springfield ; 
and there is no doubt that he studied it as thoroughly 
as he did other works, but with no settled determina- 
tion to become a lawyer. 



254 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Mr. Henry says of him, at this time, " He used to 
read law, barefooted, seated in the shade of a tree, 
and would grind around with the shade, just oppo- 
site Berry's grocery store, a few feet south of the 
door. He occasionally varied the attitude by lying 
flat on his back, and putting his feet up the tree." 
Another says that "he studied, also, Natural Phi- 
losophy, Chemistry, Astronomy, etc. He had no 
regular teacher, but perhaps received more assistance 
from Minter Graham than from any other person." 

Mr. Ellis, of whom we have spoken, opened a store 
in New Salem, and boarded at the "tavern" when 
Abraham did. He says of him : — 

" He used to assist me in the store on busy days, 
but he always disliked to wait on the ladies ; he 
preferred trading with the men and boys, as he 
used to say. I also remember that he used to sleep in 
the store, on the counter, when they had too much 
company at the tavern. 

" I well remember how he was dressed ; he wore 
flax and tow linen pantaloons, — I thought about five 
inches too short in the legs, — and frequently he had 
but one suspender, no vest or coat. He wore a calico 
shirt, such as he had in the Black Hawk War : coarse 
brogans, tan color ; blue yarn socks, and straw hat, old 
style, and without a band. 

" He was very shy of ladies. On one occasion, 
while we boarded at this tavern, there came a family, 
containing an old lady and her son, and three stylish 
daughters, from the State of Virginia, and stopped 
there for two or three weeks ; and, during their stay, 
I do not remember of Lincoln ever eating at the same 



UNSO UGHT HONORS. 255 

table when they did. I then thought it was on 
account of his awkward appearance and his wearing 
apparel." 

Mr. Lamon says of him, at this time: "He read 
with avidity all the newspapers that came to New 
Salem, — chiefly ' The Sangamon Journal,' ' The 
Missouri Republican ' and the ' Louisville Journal.' 
The latter was his favorite ; its wit and anecdotes 
were after his own heart." He also read "The 
Cincinnati Gazette" and other papers. 

His quarters at the "tavern" subjected him to 
many interruptions. People enjoyed. his conversation 
so much that they paid little regard to his time for 
study. In consequence, he was obliged to seek quiet 
elsewhere. "Sometimes he went to James Short's on 
the Sand Ridge ; sometimes to Minter Graham's ; 
sometimes to Bowlin Greene's ; sometimes to Jack 
Armstrong's, and as often, perhaps, to Abel's or Ben 
Herndon's. All of these men served him faithfully 
and signally at one time and another, and to all 
of them he was sincerely attached." 

Lincoln found work after a time. Unexpectedly he 
met John Calhoun of Springfield, — the Calhoun 
who subsequently became notorious for his efforts 
to enslave Kansas. He became President of the 
Lecompton Constitutional Convention, and disgraced 
himself, by plans and tricks, to force slavery upon 
Kansas. But when he met Abraham, he was engaged 
in a more legitimate and honorable business ; he was 
"Surveyor for Sangamon County." 

"Try your hand at surveying," said Calhoun. 

'•I know nothing about it," answered Abraham. 



256 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Learn, then." 

" How can I do that ? " 

" Easy enough if you want to do it." 

" I do want to do it. I think I should like the 
business, if I could qualify myself for it." 

" You can, and in a few weeks, too. I will lend 
you Flint and Gibson, the authors you will want to 
study, and you can provide yourself with a compass 
and chain, and I will render you any assistance I 
can." 

" You are very kind, Mr. Calhoun, and I will do the 
best I can. Your generous offer shall not come 
to nothing for want of my trying." 

" You'll make a good surveyor, I'm sure of that, 
and find plenty of business. And, what is more, 
I will depute to you that portion of my field con- 
tiguous to New Salem." 

" It is more than I could expect of you," said 
Lincoln. " I could not ask so great a favor." 

"Take it without asking," said Calhoun, in a jolly 
way. " I have much more than I can do, and I am 
glad to give you a portion of the county. The great 
influx of immigrants, and the consequent entry of 
government lands, has given me more than my hands 
full." 

" I shall be glad to accept your offer as soon as 
I am qualified for the business." 

"The bargain is closed, then, and in six weeks 
you can be surveying, if you're a mind to," said 
Calhoun. 

" I shall have a mind to, if that is all," replied 
Lincoln ; " and with a thousand thanks, too, for your 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 2$7 

assistance. It is worth all the more to me now, 
because I am thrown out of business." 

" Well, this will make business enough for you, 
and it needs a long-legged, tough, wiry fellow like 
you to do it well. This is a great country for sur- 
veyors." 

" But shall I not need to take some lessons of you 
in the field when I get through the study." 

" It will be a capital idea, and you are welcome to 
all I can aid you any time you will come where I am. 
It will give you a sweat to keep up with me." 

" Perhaps so," replied Lincoln, looking very much 
as if he did not believe it. The actual experiment 
proved that the sweat was given to the other party. 

Lincoln took Flint and Gibson, and went to Minter 
Graham's, the schoolmaster, out of the village, and 
spent six weeks in close study. Then after a few 
lessons in the field with Calhoun, he set up as sur- 
veyor, and soon found plenty of business, and good 
pay ; and his friend Green concluded that the chance of 
his making a lawyer was lost. " The accuracy of his 
surveys was seldom, if ever, questioned. Disputes 
regarding ' corners ' and ' lines ' were frequently sub- 
mitted to his arbitration ; and the decision was in- 
variably accepted as final." 

When Abraham had leisure time, at this period of 
his life, he made himself very useful. His sympathy 
for the unfortunate, needy and suffering grew stronger 
from year to year. That tumultuous element of 
society that prevailed so alarmingly when he first went 
to New Salem, he denounced more and more. When 
troubles arose between two or more parties, he would 



258 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

start up and say. " Let's go and stop it." Jack Arm- 
strong had not lost altogether his love of cruel sport, 
such as he indulged in when the "Clary Grove Boys " 
were in power ; and he bargained with a drunken fel- 
low, by the name of Jordan, to allow Jack to put him 
into a hogshead and roll him down New Salem hill, as 
once the " Boys " did with Scanlon and Solomon 
Spears. Jack was to give the fellow a gallon of whis- 
key, expecting to get more than the value of several 
gallons of the vile stuff in fun out of the operation. 
When Jack had the hogshead ready at the top of the 
hill, and his victim was waiting to be headed up 
within, Abraham, who had heard of the affair, came 
rushing to the scene of action. 

"Jack!" he shouted at the top of his voice, "stop 
that game forthwith. No more such rascally tricks in 
New Salem." 

Jack cowered and looked cheap. " You'll send 
Jordan into eternity before he gets to the foot of the 
hill," Abraham continued. " You must stop such 
cruelty, or you'll feel my long arms around you." 

"Only a little fun," answered Jack. 

"Fun!" exclaimed Abraham. "There'll be no 
more such fun in New Salem so long as I live here." 
And there was not. ■ Jack was not cruel, and he was 
one of Abraham's close friends ; and so was his wife, 
Hannah. She said, a few years ago : " Abe would 
come out to our house, about three miles, drink milk, 
eat mush, corn-bread and butter, bring the children 
candy, and rock the cradle while I got him something 
to eat. . . He would tend babies and do any thing to 
accommodate anybody." 



UNSOUGHT HONORS. 259 

On a cold winter day he saw Ab Trent cutting up 
an old house for Mr. Hill into firewood. Ab was bare- 
footed, and shivered with the cold. 

" What do you get for that job ? " Abraham in- 
quired. 

" One dollar," replied Ab ; " I want a pair of shoes," 
and he pointed to his almost frozen feet. 

" Well, give me your axe," continued Abraham, 
seizing it, " and you clear to the house where it is 
warm." 

Ab "cleared," glad to put his bare feet to a fire, 
and Abraham cut up the " house " so quickly, that 
" Ab and the owner were both amazed when they saw 
it done." 

About this time, Henry McHenry had a horse-race, 
and he applied to Abraham to act as judge. 

" No ; I've done with that," replied Abraham. 

" But you must," urged McHenry. 

" I must not, and I will not," responded Abraham, 
with more emphasis. " This horse-racing business is 
all wrong." 

"Just this once; never'll ask you again," said Mc- 
Henry. 

"Well, remember, 'just this once' it is," was Abra- 
ham's conclusion. He acted as judge, and decided 
correctly. The judge for the other side said, " Lin- 
coln is the fairest man I ever had to deal with ; if 
Lincoln is in this county when I die, I want him to 
be my administrator, for he is the only man I ever 
met with that was wholly and unselfishly honest." 
This is another of the incidents that show how he 
came to be known as "Honest Abe." 



260 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

James Short, who lived four miles from New Salem, 
says that Abraham often came to his house, and, if it 
was a very busy time on the farm, "Abe would pull off 
his roundabout and go to work with more energy than 
any man I could hire. He was the best man at husk- 
ing corn on the stock I ever saw. I used to consider 
myself very good, but he would gather two loads to 
my one." 

In 1833, President Jackson appointed him postmas- 
ter of New Salem, because he was better qualified for 
the position than any man in the town. The post- 
office was kept in Mr. Hill's store, the proprietor tak- 
ing charge of it when Lincoln was engaged in survey- 
ing or other business. When he was in the office, he 
made himself useful by reading letters for parties who 
could not read. He read all the newspapers received 
at the office, and frequently read them aloud to an 
ignorant assembly in front of the store. 

A story which fastened itself to him in manhood was 
that, when he was Postmaster in New Salem, he "carried 
the office in his hat." Of course mail-matter at such 
an office was light. Few letters were received ; and, 
sometimes, when Lincoln was going out, he would put 
the letters in his hat, that he might deliver them to 
the parties addressed, should he meet them or go near 
their residences. This novel arrangement discloses 
both his kindness of heart and fidelity to trusts. 



CHAPTER XX. 




LAURELS WON. 

EMBERS of the Legislature served two 
years in Illinois, so that the next election 
occurred in 1834. Lincoln was a candidate. 
There was a Whig party then, and he was a 
member of it. Yet many Democrats supported him 
in the contest, so that he was elected by a larger ma- 
jority than any other man on the ticket. 

" Who is this man Lincoln I hear talked about for 
the Legislature?" inquired one Dr. Barrett, who was 
a stranger to the candidate, but a friend of Herndon. 
The question was put to the latter. 

" Go to Berlin to-morrow, and you will learn who he 
is ; he is going to speak there," Herndon replied. 

Dr. Barrett was there promptly, and when the tall, 
awkward, homely candidate was pointed out by Hern- 
don, he said, — 

" Can 't the party raise any better material than 
that ! " 

"Wait," answered Herndon, "until you hear his 
speech before you pass judgment. He is our candi- 
date, and good material enough for us." 

"Well, if that fellow is qualified to go to the Legis- 



262 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

lature, then his looks belie him ; that 's all," continued 
Dr. Barrett. 

He soon heard his speech, however ; and, at the 
conclusion of it, Herndon inquired, — 

" Doctor, what do you think now ?" 

" I give it up now. Why, sir, he is a perfect take- 
'n, — he knows more than all of them put together." 

Lincoln received 1,376 votes, and was elected, caus- 
ing great joy among his friends. Many who did not 
vote for him were perfectly satisfied with his election. 
Nor did he resort to the dishonorable means of getting 
votes which some candidates employed, such as fur- 
nishing a grog-shop for their use on election day, and 
paying the bills. He utterly refused to promote his 
own election by proffering the intoxicating cup, 
although such was the custom. 

The time between the election and the assembling 
of the Legislature, Lincoln spent in very close study, 
that he might be better qualified to discharge his 
duties in the State House. 

One thing was indispensable if he would make a 
respectable appearance in the Legislature ; he must 
have a new suit of clothes, and some money for ex- 
penses — much more than he possessed. His wants, 
in this respect, were supplied in the following provi- 
dential manner. 

When he had charge of Offutt's store, in 1832, a 
stranger entered one morning, and introduced himself 
as Mr. Smoot. Lincoln jumped over the counter 
and grasped the stranger's hand in his cordial way, 
saying : — 

" Glad to see you, Mr. Smoot. I have heard of you 



LAURELS WON. 263 






often, but never had the pleasure of meeting you 
before." 

" And I am equally glad to meet you, Abe Lincoln," 
rejoined Mr. Smoot ; " I've heard so much about you 
that I feel acquainted already." 

Lincoln stood surveying him from head to foot, 
looking for all the world as if the humor within him 
would burst out, and finally remarked : — 

" Smoot, I am very much disappointed in you ; I 
expected to see a scaly specimen of humanity." 

Smoot, equal to the occasion, replied : " Yes ; and 
I am equally disappointed, for I expected to see a 
good-looking man when I saw you." 

This laid the foundation of lasting friendship be- 
tween the two men ; and, when Lincoln was elected 
to the Legislature, and needed clothes and money, he 
knew that Smoot would loan him the amount. Taking 
Hugh Armstrong with him, he went to his friend and 
said : — 

" Smoot, did you vote for me ? " 

"Vote for you ? Of course I did." 

" Well, do you want I should make a decent appear- 
ance in the Legislature ? " added Lincoln. 

" Certainly ; I don't expect you '11 make any other 
appearance, though you are not as handsome as I am," 
responded Smoot, humorously. 

" Then you will have to lend me some money ; I 
must buy some decent clothes." 

" That I can do without any trouble at all ; a 
nice suit of clothes may make a handsome man of 
you," answered Smoot. " How much money do you 
want?" 



264 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Two hundred dollars, and will pay you at the close 
of the session." 

Smoot lent him two hundred dollars upon his 
word of honor, and he says, " Lincoln returned the 
amount to me according to promise." 

About this time, Lincoln was exposed to peculiar 
temptations to infidelity, through associates and books. 
Several of his boon companions were infidels ; and 
they made light of religion and the Bible. At the 
same time Paine's " Age of Reason," and Volney's 
■ Ruins," came into his hands, and he read them with 
avidity. In these circumstances, his belief in the 
Scriptures began to waver. He expressed his doubts 
freely to others. He discussed the matter with inti- 
mate friends ; and finally, he wrote an essay in which 
his doubts of the divine authenticity of the Bible were 
plainly expressed. 

However, this proved but a freak of humanity, such 
as often appears in the lives of smart young men ; for 
his essay was soon cast aside forever ; and his early 
familiarity with, and confidence in, the Scriptures, 
asserted themselves, as the sequel will show. 

It is not our purpose to tell what " Acts and Re- 
solves " occupied Lincoln's attention, in the Legisla- 
ture, during the session. Other things, bearing upon 
his future career, demand the brief space we can 
give this period. We may say, however, that he was 
comparatively a silent member, observing and learn- 
ing, though he was faithful and efficient on committees. 

It was during the sitting of the Legislature that 
Lincoln decided to study law, without waiting to be- 
come seven feet high. It was on this wise. 



LAURELS WON. 265 



He was thrown much into the society of Hon. John 
T. Stuart, an eminent lawyer, from Springfield. This 
gentleman was a close observer, and he soon discov- 
ered that young Lincoln possessed unusual talents. 
He had no doubt that he would make his mark, if he 
could have the opportunity ; so he embraced a favor- 
able time to advise him about studying law. 

" Have you ever thought of studying law ? " Mr. 
Stuart inquired, in a delicate manner. 

" Never, though the subject has been named to me 
by others," replied Lincoln. 

" And why have you not entertained the suggestion 
favorably ? " 

" Because I have not talents enough to warrant such 
a decision ; and then I have no means, even if I had 
the talents." 

" Perhaps you have too exalted views of the abilities 
required. Let us see. Is there anything in the law 
so intricate as to demand superior talents ? Does it 
require more ability than medicine or theology? No, 
I think you will say. And then, if it did, perhaps the 
future will reveal that you possess the talents for it." 

"But then, a poor fellow like me, with no friends to 
aid, can hardly think of going through a long course 
of study." 

" It is not very long after all, and there need not 
be much expense about it, except for your board and 
clothes." 

" How can that be ? " 

" You can read law by yourself, working at your 
business of surveyor enough to board and clothe your- 
self, and in less than three years be admitted to the 
bar." 



266 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"But books are expensive, especially law-books." 

" Very true ; but that difficulty is easily remedied. 
You shall be welcome to my library. Come as often 
as you please, and carry away as many books as you 
please, and keep them as long as you please." 

" You are very generous, indeed. I could never re- 
pay you for such generosity." 

" I don't ask any pay, my dear sir," responded Mr. 
Stuart, shaking his sides with laughter. " And if I 
did, it would be pay enough to see you pleading at the 
bar." 

" I am almost frightened at the thought of appear- 
ing there," added Lincoln. 

" You'd soon get over your fright, I reckon, and 
bless your stars that you followed the advice of John 
T. Stuart." 

" I dare say." 

"Only think of it," continued Mr. Stuart; "a 
brighter prospect is before you than hundreds of dis- 
tinguished men enjoyed in early life, on account of the 
advantages offered to you. You are a ' Clay man,' and 
you now have the offer of better opportunities to rise 
than he had when he left his mother's log cabin. All 
the schooling he ever enjoyed was in his boyhood, 
when he went to school to Peter Deacon, in a log 
school-house without a window or floor. All the 
learning he acquired after that was by industry and 
perseverance, improving every leisure moment, and 
extending his studies far into the night." 

" I don't see but he had as good advantages in his 
early life as I did," interrupted Lincoln. 

" That is so ; and there is much in your history that 



LAURELS WON. 267 



reminds me of his. I suppose that is what suggested 
the comparison to me. You have a right to be a ' Clay 
man.' One would scarcely have thought, when he 
was seen riding his mother's old horse, without a sad- 
dle, and with a rope for a bridle, on his way to mill 
with a grist on the horse's back, that he — ' The Mill 
Boy of the Slashes,' as he was called — would become 
one of the most renowned men of the land." 

" That is so ; and I admire the man for his noble 
efforts to rise in the world. He made himself just 
what he became," said Lincoln. 

" And that is what you, and every other young man, 
will do, if you ever make a mark. ' Self-made, or never 
made,' is the adage. It is of little consequence what 
advantages a youth possesses, unless he is disposed to 
improve them ; and I am almost of the opinion that it 
matters but little how few the privileges a young man 
enjoys, if he only possesses the energy and industry 
to make the most of them." 

" And the ability, you might add," suggested Lin- 
coln. 

" Perhaps so, if you choose. But the history of our 
country abounds with examples of these self-made 
men, as poor and unknown as Henry Clay was. But 
now I must go ; remember my counsel, and decide 
rightly." 

"Many thanks for your interest," answered Lincoln. 
" I shall ponder the subject, and feel grateful to you, 
whether I decide as you recommend or not." 

Lincoln decided to study law. He concluded that 
he must possess some ability for the legal profession 
when such a man as Mr. Stuart advised him to enter 



268 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

it. More than any other Influence, the counsel of Mr. 
Stuart determined him to become a lawyer. 

There was much joy among Lincoln's friends in 
New Salem when they learned of his wise decision. 
All were ready to render him any assistance possible. 
His own familiar associates soon found that his studies 
would interfere constantly with that social intercourse 
which they had enjoyed so much. To pursue his 
studies, while earning a livelihood by surveying, would 
require an amount of industry, perseverance and self- 
denial of which they understood but little. 

" I am as fond of society as either of you," remarked 
Lincoln to several of his companions who were discuss- 
ing the question together at one time; "but I must 
deny myself this enjoyment, if I would succeed in my 
plans. It is pretty clear that I must do two" things : I 
must practise economy of time and money, and be as 
industrious as possible." 

" A solemn view of the future," remarked Alley, in 
a playful way. 

" And a correct one, too, I guess," said Green. 

" Correct or not," responded Lincoln, " it is the 
course I have mapped out for myself, and I must not 
depart from it." 

This decision was in response to an appeal to engage 
in a definite pastime that would interrupt his studies 
for a whole evening. 

" I shall walk to Springfield and back to-morrow," 
he continued. " Esquire Stuart has offered to loan 
me law-books, and I shall go for some to-morrow." 

Here is an illustration of his self-denial, and the 
decision with which he adhered to his purpose. He 



LAURELS WON. 269 



canvassed the whole subject in the beginning, and he 
resolved to spend no evenings in social entertain- 
ments. He saw that he must do it from sheer neces- 
sity, as he would be obliged to use up the night hours 
much more economically than the laws of health 
would permit. And now he was inflexible. His pur- 
pose was fixed, and no allurements or promises of 
pleasure could make him swerve a hair's breadth 
therefrom. 

Springfield was twenty-two miles from New Salem, 
and yet Lincoln walked there and back on the day 
proposed. He made a long day of it, and a wearisome 
one, too. On the following evening Green called upon 
him, to learn how he succeeded. 

" What! " he exclaimed. " Did you bring all these 
books home in your arms ?" They were Blackstone's 
Commentaries, in four volumes. 

" Yes ; and read forty pages of the first volume on 
the way," Lincoln replied. " Come, now, just examine 
me on the first volume." 

He had a faculty of perusing a volume when he was 

walking, and he often did it. He gained time thereby. 

" I don't see what you are made of to endure so," 

continued Green. " It would use me all up to carry 

such a load a quarter part of that distance." 

" I am used to it, you know, and that makes the 
difference. But, come, just see what I know about 
the first part of that volume." And he passed the 
first volume to him. 

" If you pass muster, you'll want I should admit you 
to the bar, I suppose," responded Green. "That I 
shall be glad to do." 



270 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

So he proceeded to examine Lincoln on the first 
volume ; and he found, to his surprise, that he was well 
posted on the forty pages read. By his close atten- 
tion, and the ability to concentrate his thoughts, he 
readily made what he read his own. 

Thus Lincoln began and continued the study of 
law, alternating his time between surveying and study, 
going to Springfield for books as often as it was neces- 
sary, and often pursuing his reading of law far into the 
night. 

With such devotion did he employ his time in study 
and manual labor, denying himself much that young 
men generally consider essential, that he might have 
said, as Cicero said of himself : "What others give to 
public shows and entertainments, to festivity, to 
amusements, nay, even to mental and bodily rest, I 
give to study and philosophy." Even when he was 
engaged in the fields surveying, his thoughts were 
upon his books, so that much which he learned at 
night was fastened in his mind by day. He might 
have adopted the language of Cicero concerning him- 
self : " Even my leisure hours have their occupation." 

Sometimes he was engaged days and weeks together 
in surveying, having only his nights in which to 
study ; and then, again, he had both day and night to 
give to his books for a time. Nor did his interest 
abate in the least ; it rather increased than otherwise. 
The longer he studied, the more deeply absorbed 
he became in his books. His robust physical con- 
stitution enabled him to endure hard toil both of 
body and mind, otherwise he would have broken 
down. 



LAURELS WOiW 27 1 






He served his constituents so faithfully in the Leg- 
islature, that he was renominated for the position 
in 1836. He had grown so rapidly in mental power, 
that, in this campaign, his speeches were of high 
order. R. L. Wilson, who was a Representative elect 
with Lincoln, says : — 

" The Saturday evening preceding the election, the 
candidates were addressing the people in the Court 
Houce at Springfield. Dr. Early, one of the candi- 
dates on the Democratic side, made some charge that 
N. W. Edwards, one of the candidates on the Whig: 
side, deemed untrue. Edwards climbed on a table, so 
as to be seen by Early and by every one in the house, 
and at the top of his voice told Early that the charge 
was false. The excitement that followed was intense, 
— so much so, that fighting men thought a duel must 
settle the difficulty. Mr. Lincoln, by the programme, 
followed Early. He took up the subject in dispute, 
and handled it fairly, and with such ability, that every 
one was astonished and pleased. So that difficulty 
ended there. Then for the first time, developed by 
the excitement of the occasion, he spoke in that tenor 
intonation of voice, that ultimately settled down into 
a clear, shrill, monotonous style of speaking, that 
enabled his audience, however large, to hear distinctly 
the lowest sound of his voice." 

Lincoln was followed in that meeting by George 
Forquer, who was a prominent Whig member of the 
Legislature in 1834, but left his party for the sake of 
getting the berth of Register of the Land Office at 
Springfield. He was a wily politician, ready to 
change front at any time, and to resort to political 



272 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

tricks for the sake of office. Forquer assailed Lincoln 
bitterly, and began his speech by saying, "the young 
man must be taken down." Lincoln stood by and 
listened to every word. As soon as Forquer closed 
his tirade, Lincoln mounted the platform, and replied 
"with great dignity and force," closing his speech 
thus : — 

" The gentleman says ' this young man must be 
taken down.' It is for you, not for me, to say whether 
I am up or down. The gentleman has alluded to my 
being a young man ; I am older in years than I am in 
the tricks and trades of politicians. I desire to live, 
and I desire place and distinction as a politician ; but 
I would rather die now, than, like the gentleman, live 
to see the day that I would have to erect a lightning- 
rod to protect a guilty conscience from an offended 
God." This termination of his speech convulsed the 
audience, and they roared with laughter, and cheered, 
at Forquer's expense. 

In the Legislature of 1836-37, Lincoln found him- 
self associated with many men who became great in 
public life thereafter. Stephen A. Douglas, James 
Shields, John A. McClernand, Dan Stone, Edward D. 
Baker, John J. Hardin, and a dozen others of equal 
ability. 

There were nine Representatives from Sangamon 
County, and not one of them was less than six feet 
high. Lincoln was the tallest of the number. Mem- 
bers of the Legislature dubbed them "The Long 
Nine ; " and they said, " Lincoln is the longest." 

Lincoln's second term in the Legislature brought 
him face to face with the Slavery question. The 



LAURELS WON. 273 



"Abolitionists" had been busily at work, scattering 
anti-slavery literature North and South, lecturing in 
the Free States upon the sin and curse of Slavery, 
and agitating the subject in every possible way. The 
State governments, even at the North, were bent on 
suppressing these "agitators," as they were called. 
Even the governors of Massachusetts and New York 
denounced them, as if they were more dangerous than 
horse-thieves. The bitterest feeling prevailed against 
them in Illinois ; and one of their leaders, Rev. E. P. 
Lovejoy, who published an anti-slavery paper at 
Alton, in that State, was shot while defending his 
printing-office against the attacks of a pro-slavery 
mob. 

In these circumstances, the Democratic party of 
Illinois, largely in the majority in the Legislature, 
waxed bold and violent. In the great excitement 
they introduced a series of resolutions against "abo- 
litionists," and in favor of Slavery, that would have 
been a disgrace to any Slave State. They sought to 
intimidate and lash the Whigs into the support of the 
infamaus measures ; and they succeeded with most of 
them except Abraham Lincoln. He denounced the 
resolutions and the party which introduced them. He 
spoke against them, and voted against them ; and he 
drew one Whig to his side — Dan Stone — who stood 
with him fearlessly to the end. And when the House 
finally adopted them, these two members presented a 
carefully prepared protest against the measure, as 
"injustice" and "bad policy," and asked to have it 
entered, in their name, upon the journal of the House. 
His good fight for Freedom in the House, from 1836 



2/4 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

to 1838, put him before the State and the country 
as a fearless and powerful opponent of the slave 
system. 

It was during this legislative term that an act was 
passed, removing the capital from Vandalia to Spring- 
field ; and the prime mover in it was Lincoln. To 
him was credited the success of the measure, which 
proved of great value to the State. 

Lincoln was admitted to the bar in 1837, and, soon 
after, removed to Springfield, and became the partner 
of John T. Stuart, his benefactor, in the practice of 
law, and he boarded with Hon. William Butler. In 
New Salem, for two years before, " he wrote deeds, 
contracts, notes, and other legal papers for his neigh- 
bors ; and ' pettifogged ' before the justice of the peace ; 
but in all this he was only trying himself, and never 
charged a penny for his services." 

In 1838, he was elected, for a third term, to the 
House of Representatives, by a larger majority than 
ever. He was candidate for Speaker at this term ; but 
the Democrats being largely in the ascendancy elected 
their candidate. An incident is related by Mr. Wilson, 
connected with the campaign that preceded the elec- 
tion of 1838, illustrative of Lincoln's decided temper- 
ance principles. Mr. Wilson accompanied him in his 
stumping tours, and he says : " At that time it was 
the universal custom to keep some whiskey in the 
house, for private use and to treat friends. The sub- 
ject was always mentioned as a matter of etiquette, 
but with the remark to Mr. Lincoln: 'You never 
drink, but may be your friend would like to take a lit- 
tle.' I never saw Mr. Lincoln drink. He often told 



LAURELS WON. V*> 



me that he never drank ; had no desire to drink, nor 
for the companionship of drinking men." 

During that campaign, a dinner was tendered to the 
"Long Nine," at Athens; where, in response to the 
toast,°" Abraham Lincoln, one of Nature's noble- 
men," he delivered one of his ablest speeches. It was 
universally agreed that the toast was a deserved com- 
pliment. 

Before Lincoln removed to Springfield, he was in- 
vited by the " Young Men's Lyceum " of that town, 
to deliver a literary lecture before them. The invita- 
tion shows that he had won a wide reputation, although 
he was only twenty-eight years of age, and only six 
years removed from the log-cabin that he built for his 
father in Macon County. His subject, on that occa- 
sion, was: "The Perpetuation of Our Free Institu- 
tions." He handled it in a manner that showed the 
familiarity of a statesman with the genius and history 
of Republican institutions. 

Lincoln was re-elected once more to the House of 
Representatives in 1840. The campaign was a very 
hot one, the Democrats in several localities making 
violent demonstrations. Colonel E. D. Baker was 
making a speech to a promiscuous assembly in the 
court-room at Springfield, when the Democrats pro- 
posed to " pull him off the stage." A riot was impend- 
ing when Lincoln threw himself between his friend 
and the audience, exclaiming : — 

"Gentlemen! let us not disgrace the age and 
country in which we live. This is a land where free- 
dom of speech is guaranteed. Mr. Baker has a right to 
speak, and ought to be permitted to do so. I am here 



276 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

to protect him, and no man shall take him from this 
stand, if I can prevent it." Mr. Baker proceeded 
without interruption thereafter. 

There was a very troublesome member in that 
Legislature from Wabash County. He was frequently 
upon his feet opposing measures on the ground of 
"unconstitutionality." His stereotyped cry against this 
and that measure was "unconstitutional." Lincoln 
was deputed to silence him ; and he soon enjoyed the 
opportunity. A measure was introduced, in which 
Lincoln's constituents were specially interested. The 
member from Wabash immediately arose, and ex- 
pended his utmost energies upon its "unconstitutional" 
features, although others could not discover them. Mr. 
Lincoln arose and said : — 

" Mr. Speaker, the attack of the member from Wabash 
upon the unconstitutionality of this measure reminds 
me of an old friend of mine. He is a peculiar-looking 
old fellow, with shaggy, overhanging eyebrows, and a 
pair of spectacles under them. (Here every member 
turned to the man from Wabash, and recognized 
a personal description.) One morning, just after the 
old man got up, he imagined he saw a squirrel on a 
tree near his house. So he took down his rifle, and 
fired at the squirrel, but the squirrel paid no attention 
to the shot. He loaded and fired again and again, 
until, at the thirteenth shot, he set down his gun 
impatiently, and said to his boy, who was looking on, 
' Boy, there's something wrong about this rifle.' ' Rifle's 
all right, I know 'tis,' responded the boy, 'but where's 
your squirrel ?' 'Don't you see him, humped up about 
half-way up the tree ? ' inquired the old man, peering 



LAURELS WON. 277 



over his spectacles, and getting mystified. 'No, I 
don't,' responded the boy ; and then turning and look- 
ing into his father's face, he exclaimed, 'I see your 
squirrel. You've been firing at a louse on your eye- 
brow ! ' " 

The House was convulsed with laughter, and the 
member from Wabash dropped his "unconstitutional" 
dodge. 

Mr. Lincoln grew rapidly in public favor as a lawyer, 
and within ten years after he left his log-cabin home, 
in Macon County, citizens of Springfield would point 
him out to strangers on the street, and say : " One of 
the ablest lawyers in Illinois." 

His partnership with Mr. Stuart terminated in 
1840, and he soon after associated himself with Judge 
S. T. Logan. He married Miss Mary Todd, daughter 
of Honorable Robert S. Todd of Lexington, Kentucky, 
in 1842, when he was thirty-three years of age. 
The fruits of this marriage were four sons, viz. 
Robert, Edwards, William, and Thomas. Edwards 
died in infancy ; William died at the age of twelve years 
in Washington ; Thomas died in Illinois at the age of 
twenty ; and Robert is now our honored secretary 
of war at Washington. 

Soon after his marriage he wrote two letters, which 
so reveal his strong friendships as well as his simplicity 
of character, that we quote a brief extract from each. 
The first he wrote to his old friend, J. F. Speed of 
Louisville, Kentucky, and in addition to the character- 
istics of the man which it reveals, it discloses some- 
what his humble mode of living. " We are not keep- 
ing house, but boarding at the Globe Tavern, which is 



278 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

very well kept now by a widow by the name of Beck. 
Boarding only costs four dollars a week. I most 
heartily wish you and your Fanny will not fail to come. 
Just let us know the time a week in advance, and we 
will have a room prepared for you, and we '11 be merry 
together'for a while." 

The other letter was penned to newly married 
friends in another State, about a month after his own 
marriage. " I have no way of telling you how much 
happiness I wish you both, though I believe you both 
can conceive it. I feel somewhat jealous of both of you 
now, for you will be so exclusively concerned for one 
another, that I shall be forgotten entirely. I regret 
to learn that you have resolved not to return to 
Illinois : I shall be very lonesome without you. How 
miserably things seem to be arranged in this world ! If 
we have no friends we have no pleasure, and if we 
have them, we are sure to lose them, and be doubly 
pained by the loss. I did hope she and you would 
make your home here, yet I own I have no right to 
insist. You owe obligations to her ten thousand times 
more sacred than any you can owe to others, and in 
that light let them be respected and observed. It is 
natural that she should desire to remain with her rela- 
tives and friends. As to friends, she could not need 
them anywhere : — she would have them in abundance 
here. Write me often, and believe me, yours forever, 
Lincoln." His heart was in his pen, as it usually was 
in his hand. 




CHAPTER XXI. 

A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 

[HEN" Lincoln commenced the practice of law- 
he was too poor to own a horse and saddle- 
bags. He was obliged to borrow this outfit 
of a friend, until he scraped together enough 
money to purchase one. 

"But why did he need a horse and saddle-bags?" 
the reader will ask. 

At that time, the Court went to the clients instead 
of the clients going to the Court. That is, Court 
business was laid out in Circuits ; and the Court trav- 
elled from place to place, holding sessions, and trans- 
acting such business as the locality brought to it. 
Lincoln was in the " Eighth Judicial Circuit " of 
Illinois ; and for several years travelled over it on 
horseback, with no other outfit than the contents of 
his saddle-bags and a cotton umbrella. A longer or 
shorter period was occupied in completing the "Cir- 
cuit," according to the amount of business brought to 
the Court. Lincoln was sometimes absent three 
months from home on the Circuit. During one of 
these long absences, his wife had a second story and 
new roof put upon their house, as a surprise to him. 



280 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

It was nicely finished when he returned. Coming in 
front of his old home, he sat upon his horse surveying 
the changed habitation, and pretending not to recog- 
nize it, he called to a man across the street : — 

" Stranger, can you tell me where Lincoln lives ? 
He used to live here." 

When he got a little more of this world's goods, 
he set up a one-horse buggy, — a very sorry and shabby- 
looking affair, which he generally used when the weather 
promised to be bad. But the lawyers were always glad 
to see him, and the landlords hailed his coming with 
pleasure. 

Honesty, kindness, generosity, fairness, justice, and 
kindred qualities, distinguished him in the practice of 
law. A whole volume, of incidents might be related, 
illustrating these qualities of the man, but a few only 
can be given. 

A stranger called to secure his services. 

"State your case," said Mr. Lincoln. The man 
stated it at considerable length, when Lincoln sur- 
prised him by saying : — 

"I cannot serve you ; for you are wrong and the 
other party is right." 

"That is none of your business, if I hire and pay you 
for taking the case," retorted the man. 

" Not my business ! " exclaimed Lincoln. " My 
business is never to defend wrong if I am a lawyer. 
I never take a case that is manifestly wrong." 

" Well, you can make trouble for the fellow," added 
the applicant. 

"Yes," responded Lincoln, " there is no reasonable 
doubt but that I can gain the case for you. I can set a 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 28 1 

whole neighborhood at loggerheads ; I can distress a 
widowed mother and her six fatherless children, and 
thereby get for you six hundred dollars, which right- 
fully belongs as much to the woman and her children 
as it does to you. But I won't do it." 

" Not for any amount of pay ? " inquired the man. 

" Not for all you are worth," replied Lincoln. "You 
must remember that some things which are legally 
right are not morally right. I shall not take your 
case." 

"I don't care a snap whether you do or not," angrily 
replied the man, starting to go ; " there are other law- 
yers in the State." 

" I'll give you a piece of advice without charge," 
added Lincoln. "You seem to be a sprightly, ener- 
getic man. I would advise you to try your hand at 
making six hundred dollars some other way." 

One afternoon an old colored woman came into the 
office of Lincoln and Herndon * to tell her sad story. 
She was once the slave of one Hinkle in Kentucky, 
who brought herself and children into Illinois, and 
made them free. Her son had gone down to New 
Orleans on a steamer, and very imprudently went 
ashore, when the police arrested him, under a State 
law that authorized the seizure and sale of free negroes 
from other States ; and he would be sold back into 
slavery unless immediately redeemed. Lincoln's sym- 
pathetic nature was deeply stirred, and his indignation 
was also aroused. 

"Run over to the State House and ask Governor 

* Lincoln terminated partnership with Judge Logan in 1845, 
and then associated himself with William H. Herndon, Esq. 



282 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Bissell if something cannot be done to obtain pos- 
session of the negro," he said to Mr. Herndon. 

The inquiry was soon made, and Herndon returned 
to say: "The governor says that he has no legal or 
constitutional right to do anything in the premises." 

Lincoln, was thoroughly aroused by this feature of 
inhumanity which the legal status disclosed, and start- 
ing to his feet, and raising his long, right arm heaven- 
ward, he exclaimed: — 

" By the Almighty's help, I'll have the negro back 
soon, or I'll have a twenty years' agitation in Illinois, 
until the governor does have a legal and constitutional 
right to do something in the premises." 

He and his partner immediately sent money of their 
own to a New Orleans correspondent, who procured 
the negro and returned him to his mother. 

A person applied to Colonel E. D. Baker, who after- 
wards became United States Senator from Oregon, 
for aid in behalf of a fugitive slave. 

"I'm sorry that I cannot serve you," Colonel Baker 
replied ; " I should be glad to help the fugitive, but, 
as a political man, I cannot afford it." 

The applicant then sought the advice of an ardent 
anti-slavery friend, who said : — 

" Go to Lincoln ; he's not afraid of an unpopular 
case. When I go for a lawyer to defend an arrested 
fugitive slave, other lawyers will refuse me, but if Mr. 
Lincoln is at home, he will always take my case." 

Judge Treat furnishes the following : — 

" A case being called for hearing in the court, Mr. 
Lincoln stated that he appeared for the appellant, and 
was ready to proceed with the argument. He then 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 283 

said : ' This is the first case I have ever had in this 
court, [it was just after he was admitted to practice in 
the Circuit Court of the United States, Dec. 3d, 1839,] 
and I have therefore examined it with great care. As 
the court will perceive, by looking at the abstract of 
the record, the only question in the case is one of 
authority. I have not been able to find any authority 
to sustain my side of the case, but I have found several 
cases directly in point on the other side. I will now 
give these cases, and then submit the case.' " 

One lawyer, who could not understand that the 
true purpose of a court is to " establish justice," re- 
marked, "The fellow is crazy." 

Once, in a closely-contested civil suit, he found him- 
self upon the wrong side of the case. His client had 
misrepresented the case, being " a slippery fellow." 
Lincoln succeeded in proving an account for his client, 
when the opposing attorney then " proved a receipt 
covering the entire cause of action." By the tfme he 
was through, Lincoln had disappeared from the court- 
room. The court sent to the hotel for him. " Tell 
the Judge," said Lincoln, "that I can't come: my 
hands are dirty, and I came over to clean them." 

In the celebrated Patterson trial, a case of murder, 
Lincoln and Swett were counsel for the accused. 
After hearing the testimony, Lincoln was satisfied 
that the accused was guilty, and calling his colleague 
into another room, he said : — 

"Swett, the man is guilty." 

" No doubt about that," Swett replied. 

"And you must defend him ; I can't." 

Swett promised to do it, and he did it so well that 



284 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he saved the guilty man from justice. They received 
a thousand dollars for services ; but Lincoln declined 
to take a cent of it. 

At another time, he was defending a man indicted 
for larceny ; and, being satisfied by the evidence that 
the accused was guilty, he called aside his colleagues, 
Parks and Young, and said : " He is guilty. If you 
can say anything for him, do it ; I can't. If I attempt, 
the jury will see that I think he is guilty, and convict 
him, of course." 

He conducted a suit against a railroad company, and 
damages were awarded to him. The railroad com- 
pany proved, and the court allowed, a certain offset ; 
and when the court was footing the amount, Lincoln 
arose and stated that his opponents had not proved 
all that was justly due them in offset, and proceeded 
to prove and allow a further offset against his client. 
His purpose was to establish "exact justice." Some- 
times, however, his sympathy for a poor fellow who 
was in danger of the penitentiary or gallows, caused 
him to overlook "exact justice," as we have seen. 

A woman called upon him to secure his services to 
prosecute a real-estate claim ; and she put a check for 
two hundred and fifty dollars into his hand as a retain- 
ing fee. 

" I will look the case over, and see what can be 
done," said Mr. Lincoln. " You may call to-morrow." 

The woman called as requested on the next day. " I 
am obliged to say that there is not a peg on which to 
hang your claim," Mr. Lincoln said to her. 

"How so?" she inquired, with not a little disap- 
pointment. 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 285 

He explained the case to her satisfaction, and she 
started to go. 

"Wait a minute," he urged, fumbling in his pocket ; 
"here is the check you left with me." 

" But, Mr. Lincoln, that belongs to you ; you have 
earned it," she answered. 

" No, no, no," responded Mr. Lincoln ; " that would 
not be right. I can't take pay for doing my duty." 
And he insisted that she should take the check. 

The testimony of his legal associates, at this point, is 
interesting. Mr. Gillespie says : " Mr. Lincoln's love 
of justice and fair play was his predominating trait. I 
have often listened to him when I thought he would 
state his case out of court. It was not in his nature 
to assume, or to attempt to bolster up, a false position. 
He would abandon his case first. He did so in the 
case of Buckmaster for the use of Denham vs. Beenes 
and Arthur, in our Supreme Court, in which I hap- 
pened to be opposed to him. Another gentleman, 
less fastidious, took Mr. Lincoln's place, and gained 
the case." 

S. C. Parks, Esq., says: "I have often said, that, 
for a man who was for a quarter of a century both a 
lawyer and politiciaii, he was the most honest man I 
ever knew. He was not only morally honest, but in- 
tellectually so. He could not reason falsely ; if he 
attempted it, he failed. In politics he never would 
try to mislead. At the bar, when he found he was 
wrong, he was the weakest lawyer I ever saw." 

His old friend, Jack Armstrong, of New Salem, 
whose kind, good wife darned his stockings, made his 
shirts, and " got him something to eat while he rocked 



286 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the baby," died not long after Lincoln settled in 
Springfield. The baby whom he rocked had grown 
into a stout but profligate young man of twenty-two 
years, — William D. Armstrong, — and he was arrested 
for murder. The circumstances were as follows : — 
At a camp meeting in Mason County, several fast 
young men became intoxicated, and then engaged in a 
"free fight," in which one Metzgar was killed. Arm- 
strong and James H. Norris were charged with the 
murder. Norris was " tried in Mason County, con- 
victed of manslaughter, and sentenced to the peniten- 
tiary for the term of eight years." 

" Aunt Hannah," as Lincoln used to call his old 
benefactress, was plunged into terrible sorrow for her 
misguided son. She scarcely knew what to do. But, 
in her great grief, she recalled one who would come 
to her aid if possible — "the noble, good Abe," who 
rocked her Billy when he was a baby in the cradle. 
She sat down and wrote to Lincoln, telling him of her 
anguish, and beseeching him to help her boy if pos- 
sible. The appeal brought tears to Lincoln's eyes, 
and enlisted his whole soul to save the accused for the 
sake of his mother. Now was the time for him to re- 
quite the many kindnesses " Aunt Hannah " showed 
him under her humble roof. He sat down and wrote 
to her an affirmative answer, at the same time encour- 
aging her to hope for the best, and asking her to come 
to Springfield at once. He pledged his services, also, 
gratuitously. 

Lincoln's letter was like a promise from the skies to 
" Aunt Hannah." Her almost broken heart took 
courage, and away she hastened to Springfield, the 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 287 

benefactress seeking a benefactor in the once poor boy- 
she helped in her humble abode. 

"Aunt Hannah" believed that her boy was not 
guilty of murder — that the fatal blow was not struck 
by him, but by another — that others sought to fasten 
the crime upon him because of his bad reputation. At 
the close of the interview, Lincoln was of the same 
opinion ; or, at least, thought there was no positive 
evidence that her son was the murderer. His heart 
was so thoroughly moved for the old lady, that he 
resolved to save her boy from the gallows if possible. 
The excitement was intense, and everybody seemed 
willing to believe that Armstrong killed Metzgar. 
Lincoln saw that it would be well-nigh impossible to 
secure an impartial jury in these circumstances, and 
he said to Mrs. Armstrong : — 

" We must have the case put off if possible, until 
the excitement dies away." 

"And let my son lie in prison all the while," Mrs. 
Armstrong answered, as if horrified by the thought 
that he should be incarcerated so long. 

" There is no other alternative. Better that than 
to be condemned and executed in advance," Lincoln 
rejoined calmly. 

"True, very true ; but I'm impatient to see him free 
again." 

" That is not strange at all, but I am satisfied that 
the case cannot be conducted so favorably for him now, 
when the public mind is so excited." 

" I understand you exactly," responded Mrs. Arm- 
strong, "and shall agree to any decision you make. The 
case is in your hands, and you will conduct it as you 
think best." 



288 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Another thing too," added Lincoln, " I need more 
time to unravel the affair. I want to produce evidence 
that shall vindicate William, to the satisfaction of 
every reasonable man." 

Lincoln secured the postponement of the trial until 
the following spring ; and he spent much time, in 
the interval, in tracing evidence, laboring as assidu- 
ously to pay his old debt of gratitude as he would 
have done under the offer of a fee of five thousand 
dollars. 

The time for the trial arrived, and it drew together a 
crowd of interested people, nor were they under so 
much excitement as they were when the case was 
postponed. The " sober second thought " had moder- 
ated their feelings, and they were in a better frame of 
mind to judge impartially. 

The witnesses for the State were introduced ; some 
to testify of Armstrong's previous vicious character, 
and others to relate what they saw of the affair on the 
night of the murder. His accuser testified in the 
most positive manner that he saw him make the 
dreadful thrust that felled his victim. 

" Could there be no mistake in regard to the person 
who struck the blow ? " asked the counsel for the 
defence. 

" None at all : I am confident of that," replied the 
witness. 

" What time in the evening was it ? " 

" Between ten and eleven o'clock." 

"Well, about how far between? Was it quarter- 
past ten or half-past ten o'clock, or still later? Be 
more exact, if you please." 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 289 

" I should think it might have been about half-past 
ten o'clock," answered the witness. 

" And you are confident that you saw the prisoner 
at the bar give the blow? Be particular in your 
testimony, and remember that you are under oath." 

" I am ; there can be no mistake about it." 

" Was it not dark ? " 

" Yes ; but the moon was shining brightly." 

"Then it was not very dark, as there was a 
moon ?" 

" No ; the moon made it light enough for me to see 
the whole affair." 

" Be particular on this point. Do I understand you 
to say that the murder was committed about half-past 
ten o'clock, and that the moon was shining brightly at 
the time ? " 

" Yes, that is what I testify." 

"Very well ; that is all." 

His principal accuser was thus positive in his testi- 
mony, and the sagacious attorney saw enough therein 
to destroy his evidence. 

After the witnesses for the State had been called, 
the defence introduced a few, to show that young 
Armstrong had borne a better character than some of 
the witnesses gave him, and also that his accuser had 
been his personal enemy, while the murdered young 
man was his personal friend. 

The counsel for the Commonwealth considered that 
the evidence was too strong against Armstrong to 
admit of a reasonable doubt of his guilt; therefore, his 
plea was short and formal. 

All eyes were now turned to Lincoln. What could 



290 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he say for the accused, in the face of such testimony? 
Few saw any possible chance for Armstrong to escape : 
his condemnation was sure. 

Mr. Lincoln rose, while a deeply impressive stillness 
reigned throughout the court-room. The prisoner sat 
with a worried, despairing look, such as he had worn 
ever since his arrest. When he was led into the court- 
room, a most melancholy expression sat upon his brow, 
as if he were forsaken by every friend, and the evidence 
presented was not suited to produce a change for the 
better. 

His counsel proceeded to review the testimony, and 
called attention particularly to the discrepancies in the 
statements of the principal witness. What had seemed 
to the multitude as plain, truthful statements he showed 
to be wholly inconsistent with other parts of the 
testimony, indicating a plot against an innocent man. 
Then, raising his clear, full voice to a higher key, and 
lifting his long, wiry right arm above his head, as if 
about to annihilate his client's accuser, he exclaimed : 
" And he testifies that the moon was shining brightly 
when the deed was perpetrated, between the hours of 
ten and eleven o'clock, when the moon did not appear 
on that night, as your Honor's almanac will show, until 
an hour or more later, and consequently the whole story 
is a fabrication." 

The audience were carried by this sudden overthrow 
of the accuser's testimony, and they were now as bitter 
against the principal witness as they were before 
against the accused. 

Lincoln continued in a strain of singular eloquence, 
portraying the loneliness and sorrow of the widowed 




It is not Sundown, and you are Frek." — Page 291. 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 29 1 

mother, whose husband, long since gathered to his 
fathers, and his good companion with the silver locks, 
welcomed a strange and penniless boy to their humble 
abode, dividing their scanty store with him, and, 
pausing, and exhibiting much emotion — "that boy 
stands before you now pleading for the life of his 
benefactor's son — the staff of the widow's declining 
years." The effect was electric ; and eyes unused to 
weep shed tears as rain. With unmistakable expres- 
sions of honest sympathy around him, Lincoln closed 
his remarkable plea with the words, " If justice is done, 
as I believe it will be, before the sun sets, it will shine 
upon my client a free man." 

The jury returned to the court-room, after thirty 
minutes of retirement, with the verdict of " Not 
Guilty." Turning to his client, Lincoln said, " It is 
not sundown, and you are free ! " 

A shout of joy went up from the crowded assembly; 
and the aged mother, who had retired when the case 
was given to the jury, was brought in with tears of 
gratitude streaming down he.r cheeks, to receive her 
acquitted boy, and thank her noble benefactor for his 
successful effort. 

" Where is Mr. Lincoln ?" she asked. And from her 
saved boy, she pressed her way through the crowd to 
him, and, seizing his hand convulsively, attempted to 
express her gratitude, but utterance was impossible. 
Tears only told how full her heart was. Lincoln 
answered only with tears for a few moments. At 
length, however, controlling his feelings, he said : — 

" Aunt Hannah, what did I tell you ? I pray to God 
that William may be a good boy hereafter — that this 



292 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

lesson may prove in the end a good lesson to him and 
to all." 

Subsequently, Lincoln went to see her at her home, 
when she pressed him to take pay for his services. 

"Why, Aunt Hannah, I shan't take a cent of yours 
— never. Anything I can do for you, I will do willingly, 
and without any charge." 

Months after this, Lincoln heard that some men were 
trying to defraud her of land, and he wrote to her : — 

"Aunt Hannah, they can't have your land. Let 
them try it in the Circuit Court, and then you appeal 
it ; bring it to the Supreme Court, and Herndon and I 
will attend to it for nothing." 

This William Armstrong, whom Lincoln saved from 
the gallows, enlisted in the Union army, in response to 
Abraham Lincoln's first call for seventy-five thousand 
volunteers. Two years later, his mother wrote to 
President Lincoln that she wanted her boy. She did 
not speak of any disability, only said that she wanted 
him. But that was enough for Mr. Lincoln, who had 
not yet fully paid his old debt of gratitude to his early 
benefactress, as he thought. He ordered the discharge 
of her son, and wrote the following brief epistle to her 
with his own hand : — 

September, 1863. 

Mrs. Hannah Armstrong, — I have just ordered the dis- 
charge of your boy William, as you say, now at Louisville, Ky. 

A lawyer was associated with Lincoln in this case, 
Mr. Walker, and he says of his plea : — 

" At first he spoke slowly, and carefully reviewed 
the whole testimony, — picked it all to pieces, and 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 293 

showed that the man had not received his wounds at 
the place or time named by the witnesses, but after- 
wards, and at the hands of some one else .... He 
skilfully untied here and there a knot, and loosened 
here and there a peg, until fairly getting warmed up, 
he raised himself in his full power, and shook the 
arguments of his opponents from him as if they were 
cobwebs .... The last fifteen minutes of his speech 
was as eloquent as I ever heard ; and such the 
power and earnestness with which he spoke to that 
jury, that all sat as if entranced, and when he was 
through, found relief in a gush of tears." Even one 
of the prosecutors said, "He took the jury by storm. 
There were tears in Mr. Lincoln's eyes while he 
spoke, but they were genuine. His sympathies were 
fully enlisted for the young man, and his terrible 
sincerity could not help but arouse the same passion 
in the jury. I have said a hundred times that it 
was Lincoln's speech that saved Armstrong from the 
gallows." 

By this time, old Mrs. Armstrong must have realized 
the full, deep significance of the divine promise, " Cast 
thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after 
many clays." 

In his circuit practice, Lincoln devoted himself to 
self-improvement, by taking books with him — reading- 
books, his grammar, arithmetic and Shakespeare. 
He read and studied much when riding. The 
finest passages of Shakespeare were committed 
in these travels ; and he would sometimes stop by the 
way, and recite them to strangers whom he met. 
Out of court, during his absence on circuit business, 



294 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he found considerable time to pore over his books, so 
that little of his time was lost. 

Soon after he began the practice of law, he com- 
menced to remit money to his poor parents. There 
was a mortgage of two hundred dollars on his father's 
little farm, and he paid it. His foster-brother, John 
Johnston, was poor and needy, and he assisted him, 
also. John was shiftless and lazy, and Lincoln once 
wrote to him, " I now promise you, that, for every 
dollar you will, between this and the first of next May, 
get for your own labor, either in money or as your 
own indebtedness, I will then give you one other 
dollar. By this, if you hire yourself at ten dollars a 
month, from me you will get ten more, making 
twenty dollars a month for your work." He visited 
his parents, also, as often as was consistent with his 
growing business and many cares. 

In his early law practice, he received five hundred 
dollars for conducting a criminal case successfully. 
A legal friend called upon him the next morning, and 
found him counting his money. 

"Look here, judge," he said ; "more money out of 
this case than I ever had in my life. If I had two 
hundred and fifty dollars more, I would go directly 
and purchase a quarter-section of land, and settle it 
upon my old stepmother." 

" I will loan you the required amount," answered 
the judge. 

"Agreed," rejoined Mr. Lincoln, and proceeded to 
write a note at once. 

" I would not use the money just as you have 
indicated," then added the judge. 



A SUCCESSFUL LAWYER. 295 

"Why not?" 

" Your stepmother is getting old, and will not live 
many years. I would settle the property upon her 
for her use during her lifetime, to revert to you upon 
her death." 

" I shall do no such thing," answered Lincoln. 
decidedly. " It is a poor return, at the best, for the 
good woman's devotion and fidelity to me, and there 
is not going to be any half way business about it." 

As soon as he could, he purchased the quarter- 
section, and settled it upon his stepmother. 

On hearing of his father's serious illness in January, 
185 1, at a time when pressing business and the sick- 
ness of his own wife rendered it impossible for him to 
leave her, he wrote a very touching filial letter, 
addressing it to Johnston. The letter has the follow- 
ing paragraph : — 

" You already know I desire that neither father or 
mother shall be in want of any comfort, either in 
health or sickness, while they live ; and I feel sure 
that you have not failed to use my name, if necessary, 
to procure a doctor or any thing else for father in his 
present sickness. I sincerely hope father may yet 
recover his health ; but, at all events, tell him to 
remember and call upon and confide in our great and 
good and merciful Maker, who will not turn away 
from him in any extremity. He notes the fall of 
a sparrow, and numbers the hairs of our heads ; and 
he will not forget the dying man who puts his trust in 
him. Say to him, that, if we could meet now, it is 
doubtful whether it would not be more painful than 
pleasant ; but that, if it be his lot to go now, he will 



296 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

soon have a joyous meeting with loved ones gone 
before, and where the rest of us, through the help of 
God, hope ere long to join them." 

That the reader may know we have not spoken 
with partiality of Mr. Lincoln as a lawyer, the follow- 
ing tribute of two of the most distinguished jurists of 
his day, spoken after his tragic death, will prove. 

Judge David Davis said : " In all the elements that 
constitute the great lawyer he had few equals. The 
framework of his mental and moral being was 
honesty. He never took from a client, even when the 
cause was gained, more than he thought the service 
was worth and the client could reasonably afford 
to pay. He was loved by his brethren of the bar." 

Judge Drummond said : " With a probity of charac- 
ter known -to all, with an intuitive insight into the 
human heart, with a clearness of statement which was 
in itself an argument, with uncommon power and 
felicity of illustration, — often, it is true, of a plain and 
homely kind, — and with that sincerity and earnest- 
ness of manner, which carried conviction, he was 
one of the most successful lawyers in the State." 




CHAPTER XXII. 

THE RISING STATESMAN. 

|R LINCOLN was elected to Congress in 
1846. He was brought forward in a meet- 
ing to nominate delegates to a Congressional 
Convention in 1844, but Col. Baker received 
the endorsement of the convention. Mr. Lincoln, 
however, was chosen one of the delegates to the 
district convention, whereupon he wrote to his old 
friend Speed, in a vein of humor, " The meeting ap- 
pointed me one of the delegates, so that in getting Baker 
the nomination I shall be ' fixed ' a good deal like the 
fellow who is made groomsman to the man who has 
1 cut him out,' and is marrying his own dear gal." 

Henry Clay, his favorite statesman, was the Whig 
candidate for President that year ; and Mr. Lincoln 
entered into the canvass with all his heart, making 
numerous speeches, and winning golden opinions. He 
was chosen a presidential elector, a merited honor. 

One day he was coming down the steps of the 
State House, when he met an old client, whose note 
for services he held. 

" Hallo, Cogdal ! " Lincoln exclaimed, heartily ex- 
tending his hand : " you have been very unfortunate, I 



298 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

hear." Cogdal had been blown up by an accidental 
discharge of powder, and lost one hand by the ca- 
lamity. 

" Yes, rather unfortunate ; but it might have been 
worse," answered Cogdal. 

" Well, that is a philosophical way of looking at it, 
certainly," continued Lincoln. " But how are you 
getting along in your business ? " 

" Badly enough. I am not only broken up in my 
business, but crippled for life also." 

" I am sorry for you, very sorry indeed," replied 
Lincoln with profound sympathy. 

" I have been thinking about that note of yours," 
Cogdal added, in a despairing tone. 

" Well, " responded Lincoln, in a half-laughing way, 
"you need n't think any more about it," at the same 
time taking the note from his pocket-book and handing 
it to him. 

Cogdal protested against taking the note, and ex- 
pressed the hope that some day he might be able to 
pay it. But Lincoln insisted, adding, " If you had the 
money I would not take it," and he hurried away. 

We said that he was elected to Congress in 1846. 
He was elected too, by a surprisingly large majority. 
Henry Clay received but nine hundred and fourteen 
majority in the district in 1844 ; but Lincoln's majority 
was one thousand five hundred and eleven. Many 
voted for him who were not Whigs, his honesty and 
peculiar fitness for the office winning their votes. He 
took his seat in the National House of Representa- 
tives, Dec. 6, 1847 ; and the fact that he was the only 
Whig member from Illinois contributed somewhat 



THE RISING STATESMAN. 299 

to his popularity. At the same session Stephen A. 
Douglas took his seat in the United States Senate — 
Democratic senator from Illinois. He was " the 
youngest and shortest member of the senate," while 
Lincoln was the " youngest and longest member of the 
house ; " so a waggish associate claimed. 

The country was thoroughly excited, at that time, 
upon the questions of "the Mexican war" and the 
" admission of Texas as a slave State." The war with 
Mexico was unjustly waged in the interests of slavery, 
and the South was looking to Texas for the extension 
of their inhuman institution. Lincoln at once arrayed 
himself against these unrighteous measures, and he 
delivered a speech which was acknowledged to be the 
best that was delivered against them during the ses- 
sion. 

The anti-slavery conflict in Congress was hot and 
bitter during the two years he served in the House. 
Those mighty champions of Liberty, John Quincy 
Adams of Massachusetts, and Joshua R. Giddings, of 
Ohio, were members ; and Lincoln found himself fight- 
ing for his principles by their side. He assailed slavery 
as " unjust and cruel ;" and did not hesitate to declare 
that God would visit the land in terrible retribution, if 
the American people continued to legislate and govern 
in the interests of human bondage. He voted forty- 
two times, in one way and another, for that famous 
anti-slavery measure — "The Wilmot Proviso." 

He became popular with both Whigs and Democrats, 
by reason of his genial spirit, fairness, and sincerity in 
debate, his quick-witted ability in controversy, and his 
transparency and uprightness of character. 



300 riONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

He declined re-election in 1848, and again in 1850, 
preferring to be at home with his family, and follow his 
chosen profession. 

His life in Washington forced upon his conviction 
anew, that he must give more attention to intellectual 
improvement. He saw and felt that the distance 
between himself and many of his congressional a co o- 
ciates, was great indeed ; and he resolved to lessen it. He 
devoted himself to the study of English and American 
literature with the earnest application of early days. He 
studied language and style by reading the best authors. 
In short, he took a new departure in mental progress, 
and really accomplished what elevated his speeches and 
composition the rest of his life. Being one who ac- 
cepted the old maxim fully, " Never too old to learn," 
he not only made the most of himself possible after he 
was forty years of age ; but he made more of himself 
within a few years, than his most partial friends ever 
anticipated. 

Until the repeal of the Missouri Compromise in 1854, 
and the attempt to force slavery upon Kansas, Lincoln 
remained in comparative retirement, devoting himself 
to his family and profession. Occasionally some pro- 
slavery demonstration by his old friend and political 
antagonist, Stephen A. Douglas, called him out, for he 
was ever ready to pursue him in public debate or polit- 
ical action. He made some speeches in the canvass 
for General Taylor, Whig candidate for president, in 
1848, and also for General Scott, Whig candidate for 
president, in 1852. In the same year, also, he delivered 
a eulogy upon Henry Clay in the State Capitol. He 
made some addresses on Temperance, also. He had 



THE RISING STATESMAN. 301 

been accustomed to make "little speeches" upon Tem- 
perance, as he called them, from the time he entertained 
his companions on the stumps of Indiana. At the 
time he entered upon the legal profession, the temper- 
ance cause was demanding attention ; and he had 
occasional calls for addresses in this line. In 1854 he 
joined the Sons of Temperance, believing that the 
Order was accomplishing much good in the West as 
well as in the East. He did not hesitate to lend both 
example and voice against the drink customs. 

But the repeal of the Missouri Compromise in 1854 
aroused him by its base injustice and political chicanery. 
A solemn covenant, made in 1820, to shut slavery out of 
the northwest, was wantonly broken, that slavery might 
have a foothold in Kansas and Nebraska ; and his old 
associate and antagonist, Douglas, was the author of it. 
The deed aroused his whole stalwart nature against the 
arch democrat, who devised and prosecuted the dia- 
bolical scheme ; and he took the field of political 
controversy, stronger and more earnest than ever. 

Mr. Douglas delivered a speech in Springfield, while 
the State Fair was in progress, and thousands of people 
were there. Mr. Lincoln heard it, and replied to it, in 
the same place, on the following day. Listeners de- 
clared it to be the grandest effort of his life, and that 
it completely destroyed the political foundation on 
which Douglas stood. His speech was over three hours 
long. The " Springfield Journal " said : 

" He quivered with feeling and emotion. The whole 
house was as still as death. He attacked the bill (the 
Kansas-Nebraska bill, of which Douglas was the author) 
with unusual warmth and energy, and all felt that a 



302 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

man of strength was its enemy ; and that he intended 
to blast it if he could by strong and manly efforts. He 
was most successful ; and the house approved the 
glorious triumph of truth by loud and long-continued 
huzzas. Women waved their white handkerchiefs in 
token of their silent but heartfelt consent. Every 
man felt that the speech was unanswerable — that no 
human power could overthrow it, or trample it under 
foot." 

Mr. Lincoln followed Douglas to Peoria and other 
places, and was equally triumphant in his replies to 
the advocate of slavery. The result was a complete 
political revolution in the state. The Democrats had 
been in power in Illinois, ever since their party was 
organized. But now their power was broken, and a 
Whig legislature was elected, Lincoln being among its 
members. A press of business, however, compelled 
him to resign before taking his seat. Many Democrats 
voted with the Whigs, because they were opposed to 
forcing slavery upon Kansas and Nebraska. 

This new Whig Legislature had to elect a United 
States Senator : and Mr. Lincoln was the Whig candi- 
date ; Lyman Trumbull the anti-Kansas-Nebraska Dem- 
ocratic candidate ; and General James Shields, the 
Douglas party candidate. After several undecisive 
ballots, the Democrats dropped Gen. Shields and 
took up Governor Matheson, who had not committed 
himself to either side of the great question ; and 
Matheson came within three votes of an election. At 
this juncture, an effort was made to unite the friends 
of Lincoln and Trumbull upon one of them. Here 
the remarkable magnanimity of Lincoln's nature came 



THE RISING STATESMAN. 303 

to the rescue, showing how much more he cared 
for the principle at issue than he did for himself. 

" Withdraw my name and support Trumbull," 
urged Lincoln; "we shall be whipped if you don't." 

" Never ; never," protested one and another. 

" Four votes only will make Matheson senator, and 
we must not risk another ballot," urged Lincoln, with 
still more earnestness. 

"Impossible," answered one. "We cannot do it," 
said another. 

Lincoln grew determined over the danger of losing 
in the contest, and straightening himself up to his 
full height, as he was wont under great emotion : — 

" It must be done," he shouted. 

The Whigs yielded, though several of them wept at 
the necessity ; and the united effort made Trumbull 
senator. But, to the Whigs of Illinois, Lincoln never 
appeared so truly great, as he did after that act 
of superior magnanimity. No man in the State 
or country rejoiced more heartily over the triumph 
than Mr. Lincoln. 

In 1856, the Republican party of Illinois was organ- 
ized at Bloomington, and the foremost man in its 
organization was Abraham Lincoln. With one of his 
ablest speeches, on that occasion, he fired all hearts. 
Mr. Scripps says : " Never was an audience more 
completely electrified by human eloquence. Again 
and again during the progress of its delivery, they 
sprang to their feet and upon the benches, and 
testified by long continued shouts and the waving of 
hats, how deeply the speaker had wrought upon their 
minds and hearts." 



304 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

From the organization of the Republican party, Mr. 
Lincoln was not only the first Republican in Illinois, 
but also in all the Western States ; and a month later, 
at the National Republican convention to nominate a 
candidate for President, his name was brought 
forward for the Vice-Presidency. On the informal 
ballot he received one hundred and ten votes, and 
Mr. Dayton two hundred and fifty-nine. This com- 
plimentary vote was secured without Mr. Lincoln's 
knowledge. He was attending court at Urbana in 
his own State. The newspaper report that reached 
Urbana said, " Lincoln received one hundred and ten 
votes." 

" Is that our Lincoln ! " inquired one of the lawyers. 

" Of course, it is," replied another. And turning 
to Mr. Lincoln, who made his appearance just then, 
he remarked : — 

" I congratulate you upon so handsome a vote for 
Vice-President." 

" Me ! " exclaimed Lincoln, who had already read 
the paper. " Have you any idea that means me ? " 

" Certainly, I have no idea that it means anybody 
else." 

" Well, you were never more mistaken in your life," 
protested Mr. Lincoln ; " it can't mean me. It must 
be the great Lincoln from Massachusetts." 

He utterly refused to believe the newspaper report, 
until he read a full account of the proceedings of the 
convention. The humble estimate he put upon his 
own abilities and influence, and the fact that he had 
indulged no aspirations for the office, is sufficient 
explanation of the affair. 



THE RISIXG STATESMAN. 305 

He took part in the campaign that followed for 
Fremont and Dayton, striking some telling blows for 
liberty. The opposition found a powerful antagonist 
in him, and sometimes resorted to mean expedients to 
show their hostility. At a meeting at Charleston, Coles 
County, a Democrat interrupted him by saying, "Mr. 
Lincoln, is it true that you entered this State bare- 
footed, driving a yoke of oxen ? " 

Mr. Lincoln paused a few moments, and then 
answered, " I think I can prove the fact by at least a 
dozen men in the crowd, any one of whom is more 
respectable than my questioner." 

Then he branched off upon the helps of a free gov- 
ernment to a poor boy, and "the curse of Slavery to 
the white man, wherever it existed," speaking, in 
a strain of thrilling eloquence, and closing his response 
with the following inspiring sentence, that thoroughly 
aroused the assembly : — 

" Yes, we will speak for freedom and against 
slavery, as long as the Constitution of our country 
guarantees free speech, until everywhere on this wide 
land, the sun shall shine and the rain shall fall and the 
wind shall blow upon no man who goes forth to 
unrequited toil." 

Mr. Lincoln had prophesied, not only bloodshed in 
Kansas, but also a bloody contest between the North 
and South, in consequence of the repeal of the 
Missouri Compromise, and the Kansas-Nebraska out- 
rage. Already the first prophecy was fulfilled, and 
" Border Ruffians " were burning houses, shooting 
Free-State men, and sacking villages, to frighten 
freedom out of Kansas. Douglas saw that political 



306 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

death awaited him in Illinois if he pursued his 
Kansas-Nebraska measure ; and, all at once he changed 
front, and voted with the Republicans in Congress 
against the very measure his own political recklessness 
inaugurated. His senatorial term was drawing to 
a close, and now he sought a re-election by appealing 
to Republicans for support. Those of Illinois were 
too familiar with his duplicity to believe he was 
honest, and refused to support him. In other States, 
where his political character was not so well under- 
stood, there were prominent Republicans who asked 
their brethren of Illinois to return him to the 
United States Senate. 

Mr. Lincoln was never bolder, more earnest and 
stronger, than he was in this campaign. The Re- 
publican State convention met at Springfield on the 
sixteenth day of June ; and it was scarcely organized 
when a banner was borne into the hall, on which was 
inscribed, "Cook County for Abraham Lincoln." 
The sight of it seemed to craze the whole assembly. 
They sprang to their feet, jumped upon the benches, 
swung their hats, shouted, cheered and gave them- 
selves up to demonstrations of delight for several 
minutes. Mr. Lincoln was unanimously nominated ; 
and, in the evening, delivered before the convention 
his famous speech, known in history as "The House- 
divided-against-itself Speech." This title was derived 
from a single paragraph at the opening of the speech, 
as follows : — 

"A house divided against itself cannot stand. I 
believe this government cannot endure permanently, 
half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to 



THE RISING STATESMAN. 307 

be dissolved, — I do not expect the house to fall ; but I 
do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become 
all one thing, or all the other." Late in the after- 
noon of that day, Mr. Lincoln went over to his office, 
with his carefully prepared speech in his pocket ; and, 
locking the door behind him, he said to his partner, 
Mr. Herndon : — 

" Let me read you a paragraph of my speech." He 
read the foregoing extract, which was a part of the 
first paragraph. 

" How do you like it?" inquired Mr. Lincoln, before 
Herndon had time to express his surprise. " What do 
you think of it ? " 

" I think it is true," replied Mr. Herndon, " but is it 
entirely' politic to read or speak it just as it is 
written ? " 

"That makes no difference," answered Mr. Lincoln. 
Mr. Herndon was still more surprised. " Radical " as he 
was, Lincoln was in advance of him. 

" That expression is a truth of all human experience, 
— ' a house divided against itself cannot stand,' " added 
Mr. Lincoln with emphasis. " The proposition is 
indisputably true, and has been true for more than 
six thousand years ; and — I will deliver it as written 
I would rather be defeated with this expres- 
sion in the speech, than be victorious without it." 

An hour before the address was to be delivered in 
the Representatives' Hall, a dozen of his friends assem- 
bled in the library room, and Mr. Lincoln read to them 
several paragraphs of his speech, including the extract 
quoted. 

" What do you think of it ? " he asked. 



308 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



" Fifty years in advance of public opinion," answered 
one leader almost angrily. 

"Very unwise," replied another. 

" It will kill the Republican party," said a third. 

"And you too, Lincoln," said a fourth. 

" Nothing could be more unwise ; it will certainly 
defeat your election ; " added a fifth. 

And so the criticisms fell fast from nearly every 
tongue. Every one, except Mr. Herndon, condemned 
the extract in question. He sprang to his feet after 
all had delivered themselves freely, and said : — " Lin- 
coln, deliver it just as it reads." 

Mr. Lincoln sat in silence for a moment, then, rising 
from his seat, he walked backwards and forwards a few 
moments longer. Suddenly stopping and facing the 
company, he said : — 

" Friends, I have thought about this matter a great 
deal, have weighed the question well from all corners, 
and am thoroughly convinced the time has come when 
it should be uttered ; and if it must be that I must go 
down because of this speech, then let me go doivn linked 
to truth — die in the advocacy of what is right and just." 

He delivered the speech just as he had prepared it, 
and great, indeed, was the excitement occasioned 
thereby. Many of his warmest friends were provoked 
by his " unwisdom." 

" A fool's speech," cried one. 

" Wholly inappropriate ! " cried another. 

" That foolish speech of yours will kill you, Lincoln," 
remarked Dr. Loring. " I wish it was wiped out of 
existence ; don't you wish so now ? " 

"Well, doctor," replied Mr. Lincoln, "if I had to 



THE RISING STATESMAN. 309 

draw a pen across, and erase my whole life from exis- 
tence, and had one poor gift or choice left, as to what 
I should save from the wreck, I should choose that 
speech, and leave it to the world unerased." 

More than a year afterwards, he was dining with a 
party of friends at Bloomington, when that speech 
became the theme of discussion, and every person 
present declared it was "a great mistake." 

"Gentlemen," replied Mr. Lincoln, "you may think 
that speech was a mistake ; but I never have believed 
it was, and you will see the day when you will consider 
it the wisest thing I ever said." 

His prophecy was completely fulfilled. The fact 
was, Mr. Lincoln was led " in a way that he knew 
not." A higher intelligence than mere human sagac- 
ity guided him in the right. That speech was one 
of the most marvellous productions in American annals, 
and it not only gave the keynote to his great sena- 
torial contest with Mr. Douglas, but it settled the 
character and issue of the next presidential election, 
and finally sealed the doom of slavery in this country. 

After the delivery of this speech, Mr. Lincoln 
challenged Mr. Douglas to joint debates throughout 
the canvas. The latter accepted the challenge so far 
as to arrange for debates with the former in seven im- 
portant places of the state. Mr. Douglas conducted 
his part of the affair with great pomp and noise, 
proceeding to his appointments on a chartered train 
accompanied with a band of music, and artillery to fire 
salutes, at a cost of fifty thousand dollars. On the 
other hand, Mr. Lincoln pursued his usual quiet, unos- 
tentatious and honest way ; yet he won the victory 



3IO PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

every time. " To say that he was the victor, morally 
and intellectually, is simply to record the judgment of 
the world." " In this canvass he earned a reputation 
as a popular debater second to that of no man in 
America — certainly not second to that of his famous 
antagonist." At the close of one of his debates with 
Mr. Douglas, even after the latter had occupied thirt) 
minutes in closing the discussion, the assembly was 
so thoroughly "enthused " by Mr. Lincoln's victorious 
effort, that they seized him, in their exuberance of joy, 
and bore him out of the hall to the hotel upon their 
shoulders, amidst cheers and shouts that made the 
welkin ring. In the popular vote he received a ma- 
jority of four thousand and eighty-five over Mr. Doug- 
las ; but owing to the unfair apportionment of the legis- 
lative districts, Mr. Douglas was returned to the United 
States Senate. 

In one of these debates he paid one of the most 
eloquent tributes to the "Declaration of Independence" 
(after having enunciated its principles) that ever fell 
from human lips ; and he closed with these memo- 
rable words : 

" You may do anything with me you choose, if you 
will but heed these sacred principles. You may not 
only defeat me for the senate, but you may take me 
and put me to death. While pretending no indifference 
to earthly honors, I do claim to be actuated in this con- 
test by something higher than an anxiety for office. I 
charge you to drop every paltry and insignificant thought 
for any man's success. It is nothing ; I am nothing ; 
Judge Douglas is nothing. But do not destroy that 

IMMORTAL EMBLEM OF HUMANITY, THE DECLARA- 
TION of American Independence." 




CHAPTER XXIII. 
GOING UP HIGHER. 

|HE Republican State Convention of Illinois 
met at Decatur, May 9, i860, in a "Wig- 
wam " erected for the purpose. Directly 
after the convention was organized, Governor 
Oglesby, the chairman, arose, and said, " I am informed 
that a distinguished citizen of Illinois, and one whom 
Illinois will ever delight to honor, is present, and I 
wish to move that this body invite him to a seat on the 
stand." After a pause, as if to awaken curiosity, he 
called out the name in a much louder voice, Abraham 
Lincoln. Such a round of applause, cheer upon cheer, 
followed the announcement, as shook every board and 
joist of the wigwam. A rush, too, was made for the 
gentleman, who stood near the door, and he was act- 
ually taken up and borne through the dense crowd to 
the platform. The cheering was like the roar of the 
sea. Hats were thrown up by the Chicago delegation, 
as if hats were no longer useful. 

The convention proceeded to business, and was fairly 
under way, when the chairman interrupted by saying : 
"There is an old Democrat outside, I understand, 
who has something to present to this convention." 



312 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Receive it ! receive it ! " responded several. 

" What is it ? what is it?" cried out others. 

" Let us have it," shouted another. 

The convention voted to receive the Democrat, and 
in walked Mr. Lincoln's old friend, John Hanks, who 
helped him to split the rails for his father's fifteen acre 
lot ; the same Hanks who went with him to New 
Orleans for Offutt, and enlisted with him in the Black 
Hawk War. John bore on his shoulders two rails, from 
the lot he and Abe split, surmounted with a banner 
with this inscription : — 

"Two Rails 

From a Lot Made by Abraham Lincoln and John Hanks, 

in the Sangamon Bottom, in the Year 1830." 

Wild, tumultuous applause greeted the rails, and the 
scene became simply tempestuous and bewildering. 
The tumult subsided only to make way for another. 

" A speech ! " " Let's hear the rail-splitter ! " "A 
speech!" "Old Abe must show his hand!" These 
and other demands were made in one incessant noisy 
clamor, lasting several minutes, until Mr. Lincoln arose, 
confused, blushing, yet smiling, and remarked, — 

" Gentlemen, I suppose you want to know something 
about those things (pointing to the rails). Well, the 
truth is, John Hanks and I did make rails in the San- 
gamon Bottom. I don't know whether we made those 
rails or not ; the fact is, I don't think they are a credit 
to the makers. But I do know this : I made rails then, 
and I think I could make better ones than these now." 

Another storm of applause shook the wigwam for 
several minutes ; and was followed by a resolution 



GOING UP HIGHER. 313 

declaring " Abraham Lincoln to be the first choice of 
the Republican party of Illinois for the Presidency." 
The resolution was carried unanimously, amidst the 
wildest demonstrations. 

Five thousand people attended this convention, 
among them many Democrats who were friends of 
Lincoln. Other Democrats were there, who were not 
a little provoked at the course of John Hanks and 
others of their party. One of them accosted Mr. Lin- 
coln, after the adjournment : — 

"And so you're Abe Lincoln?" 

"That's my name, sir," answered Mr. Lincoln. 

"They say you're a self-made man." 

" Well, yes ; what there is of me is self-made," replied 
Mr. Lincoln. 

"Wall," added the Democrat, after surveying him 
from head to foot, " all I've got to say is, that it was a 
very bad job." 

It should be said that, after Mr. Lincoln's senatorial 
contest with Mr. Douglas, particularly in 1859, he 
spoke by invitation in Kansas, Ohio, New York, and 
several of the New England States. His speeches 
were pronounced masterly. Cooper Institute was 
thronged to hear him in New York city, and he was 
introduced by the poet Bryant. The next morning, 
the Tribune said, " No man ever before made such an 
impression on his first appeal to a New York audience." 

While in New York, two incidents transpired, which 
show much of the man. He met an old acquaintance 
from Illinois in a mercantile establishment. " How 
have you fared since you left Illinois ? " inquired Mr. 
Lincoln. 



314 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" I have made a hundred thousand dollars, and lost 
it all. And how is it with you, Mr. Lincoln ?" 

" Oh, very well," Mr. Lincoln replied ; " I have the 
cottage at Springfield, and about eight thousand dollars 
in money. If they make me vice-president with Seward, 
as some say they will, I hope I shall be able to increase 
it to twenty thousand ; and that is as much as any man 
ought to want." 

He stopped in New York over Sunday, and strolled 
alone into the Sabbath School of the Five Points Mis- 
sion, interested to learn what could be done for the 
street children of the city. The superintendent was 
impressed by the appearance of the visitor, and invited 
him to address the girls and boys. Without hesitation, 
he consented, and immediately began a little speech 
that completely captivated his young listeners. Sev- 
eral times he essayed to stop, but his listeners cried 
out, "Go on, go on, sir." "Do go on." It was an 
unusual address, and charmed both teacher and pupil 
alike. When he was about to depart, the superintend- 
ent said : 

" Pardon me ; may I have the pleasure of knowing 
who my visitor is ? " 

" Abraham Lincoln of Illinois," he replied. 

He spoke at Norwich, Conn., and subsequently Dr. 
Gulliver published the following instructive and inter- 
esting account of his interview with him, on the next 
morning after listening to him : — 

" The next morning I met him at the railroad 
station, where he was conversing with our Mayor, 
every few minutes looking up the track and inquir- 
ing, half impatiently and half quizzically, ' Where 's 



GOING UP HIGHER. 315 

that "wagon" of yours? Why don't the "wagon" 
come along ? ' On being introduced to him, he fixed 
his eyes upon me, and said : ' I have seen you before, 
sir ! ' 'I think not,' I replied : ' you must mistake me 
for some other person.' 'No, I don't; I saw you at 
the Town Hall, last evening.' 'Is it possible, Mr. 
Lincoln, that you could observe individuals so closely 
in such a crowd ? ' ' Oh, yes ! ' he replied, laughing ; 
' that is my way. I don't forget faces. Were you 
not there ? ' 'I was, sir, and I was well paid for 
going ; ' adding, somewhat in the vein of pleasantry he 
had started, ' I consider it one of the most extraordi- 
nary speeches I ever heard.' 

"As we entered the cars, he beckoned me to take 
a seat with him, and said, in a most agreeably frank 
way, ' Were you sincere in what you said about my 
speech just now ? ' 

" ' I meant every word of it, Mr. Lincoln. Why, an 
old dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, who sat near me, 
applauded you repeatedly, and when rallied upon his 
conversion to sound principles, answered : ' I don't 
believe a word he says, but I can't help clapping him, 
he 's so pat" That I call the triumph of oratory.' 

"When you convince a man against ins will, 
Though he is of the same opinion still." 

' Indeed, sir, I learned more of the art of public 
speaking last evening than I could from a whole 
course of lectures on Rhetoric' 

" ' Ah ! that reminds me,' said he, ' of a most 
extraordinary circumstance which occurred in New 
Haven the other day. They told me that the Pro- 



316 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

fessor of Rhetoric in Yale College, — a very learned 
man, is n't he ? ' 

" ' Yes, sir, and a fine critic too.' 

" ' Well, I suppose so ; he ought to be, at any 
rate, — they told me that he came to hear me, and 
took notes of my speech, and gave a lecture on it to 
his class the next day ; and, not satisfied with that, 
he followed me up to Meriden the next evening, and 
heard me again for the same purpose. Now, if this is 
so, it is to my mind very extraordinary. I should 
like very much to know what it was in my speech you 
thought so remarkable, and what you suppose inter- 
ested my friend, the professor, so much.' 

" ' The clearness of your statements, Mr. Lincoln ; 
the unanswerable style of your reasoning, and 
especially your illustrations, which were romance and 
pathos, and fun and logic all welded together. That 
story about the snakes, for example, which set the 
hands and feet of your Democratic hearers in such 
vigorous motion, was at once queer and comical, and 
tragic and argumentative. It broke through all the 
barriers of a man's previous opinions and prejudices at 
a crash, and blew up the very citadel of his false theo- 
ries before he could know what had hurt him.' 

" ' Can you remember any other illustrations,' said 
he ' of this peculiarity of my style ? ' 

" I gave him others of the same sort, occupying 
some half-hour in the critique, when he said : 'I am 
much obliged to you for this. I have been wishing 
for a long time to find some one who would make this 
analysis for me. It throws light on a subject which 
has been dark to me. I hope you have not been too 



GOING UP HIGHER. 317 

flattering in your estimate. Certainly, I have had a 
most wonderful success, for a man of my limited 
education.' 

" ' That suggests, Mr. Lincoln, an inquiry which 
has several times been upon my lips during this 
conversation. I want very much to know how 
you got this unusual power of "putting things." 
It must have been a matter of education. No man 
has it by nature alone. What has your education 
been ? ' 

" ' Well, as to education, the newspapers are cor- 
rect ; I never went to school more than six months 
in my life. But, as you say, this must be a product 
of culture in some form. I have been putting the 
question you ask me to myself, while you have been 
talking. I can say this, that among my earliest 
recollections I remember how, when a mere child, I 
used to get irritated when any body talked to me in a 
way I could not understand. I don't think I ever 
got angry at anything else in my life. But that 
always disturbs my temper, and has ever since. I 
can remember going to my little bed-room, after 
hearing the neighbors talk of an evening with my 
father, and spending no small part of the night 
walking up and down, and trying to make out what 
was the exact meaning of some of their, to me, dark 
sayings. I could not sleep, though I often tried to, 
when I got on such a hunt after an idea, until I had 
caught it ; and when I thought I had got it, I was not 
satisfied until I had repeated it over and over, until 
I had put it in language plain enough, as I thought, 
for any boy I knew to comprehend. This was a kind 



318 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

of passion with me, and it has stuck by me ; for I am 
never easy now, when I am handling a thought, till 
I have bounded it North, and bounded it South, and 
bounded it East, and bounded it West. Perhaps 
that accounts for the characteristic you observe in 
my speeches, though I never put the two things 
together before.' 

" ' Mr. Lincoln, I thank you for this. It is the 
most splendid educational fact I ever happened 
upon. But, let me ask, did you prepare for your 
profession ? ' 

"'Oh, yes! I "read law," as the phrase is; that 
is, I became a lawyer's clerk in Springfield, and 
copied tedious documents, and picked up what I 
could of law in the intervals of other work. But 
your question reminds me of a bit of education I 
had, which I am bound in honesty to mention. In 
the course of my law-reading, I constantly came 
upon the word demonstrate. I thought at first that 
I understood its meaning, but soon became satisfied 
that I did not. I said to myself, " What do I mean 
when I demonstrate more than when I reason or 
prove ? How does demonstration differ from any 
other proof?" I consulted Webster's Dictionary. 
That told of "certain proof," "proof beyond the 
possibility of doubt ; " but I could form no idea 
what sort of proof that was. I thought a great 
many things were proved beyond a possibility of 
doubt, without recourse to any such extraordinary 
process of reasoning as I understood " demonstra- 
tion " to be. I consulted all the dictionaries and 
books of reference I could find, but with no better 



GOING UP HIGHER. 319 

results. You might as well have defined blue to a 
blind man. At last I said, " Lincoln, you can 
never make a lawyer if you do not understand what 
demonstrate means ; " and I left my situation in 
Springfield, went home to my father's house, and 
stayed there till I could give any proposition in the 
six books of Euclid at* sight. I then found out 
what " demonstrate " means, and went back to my 
law-studies.' 

" 1 could not refrain from saying, in my admiration 
at such a development of character and genius 
combined : ' Mr. Lincoln, your success is no longer 
a marvel. It is the legitimate result of adequate 
causes. You deserve it all, and a great deal more. 
If you will permit me, I would like to use this fact 
publicly. It will be most valuable in inciting our 
young men to that patient classical and mathemat- 
ical culture which most minds absolutely require. 
No man can talk well unless he is able first of all 
to define to himself what he is talking about. Eu- 
clid, well studied, would free the world of half its 
calamities, by banishing half the nonsense which 
now deludes and curses it. I have often thought 
that Euclid would be one of the best books to put 
on the catalogue of the Tract Society, if they could 
only get people to read it. It would be a means of 
grace.' 

" ' I think so,' said he, laughing ; ' I vote for 
Euclid.' 

"As we neared the end of our journey, Mr. Lin- 
coln turned to me very pleasantly, and said : ' I 
want to thank you for this conversation. I have 



320 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

enjoyed it very much.' I replied, referring to some 
stalwart denunciations he had just been uttering of 
the demoralizing influence of Washington upon 
Northern politicians in respect to the slavery ques- 
tion, ' Mr. Lincoln, may I say one thing to you 
before we separate ? ' 

" ' Certainly, anything you please.' 

" ' You have just spoken of the tendency of po- 
litical life in Washington to debase the moral con- 
victions of our representatives there by the admix- 
ture of considerations of mere political expediency. 
You have become, by the controversy with Mr. 
Douglas, one of our leaders in this great struggle 
with slavery, which is undoubtedly the struggle of 
the nation and the age. What I would like to say 
is this, and I say it with a full heart, Be true to your 
principles and we will be true to you, and God will 
be true to us all ! ' His homely face lighted up 
instantly with a beaming expression, and taking my 
hand warmly in both of his, he said : ' I say Amen 
to that — Amen to that ! ' 

The National Republican Convention assembled in 
Chicago on the sixteenth day of June, i860. A 
mammoth " Wigwam " was erected to accommodate the 
delegates and crowd of spectators It was estimated 
that twenty-five thousand men attended that conven- 
tion. Fifteen hundred of them slept under the roof 
of a single hotel. 

The candidates for President were William H. Sew- 
ard, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, Judge McLean, 
Willliam L. Dayton, Simon Cameron, Abraham Lin- 
coln and Benjamin F. Wade. It must be conceded, 



GOING UP HIGHER. 321 

however, that Mr. Seward was by far the most promi- 
nent, and his nomination was generally expected by 
Republicans in the East, if not in the West. Indeed, 
Mr. Lincoln was not known to the rank and file of the 
Republican party, outside of the western States. Mr. 
Chase and Judge Bates were better known to the 
people of the whole country than he. But the ballot- 
ing proved that Mr. Seward was not so strong a 
candidate as many anticipated. Mr. Chase had forty- 
nine votes, and Judge Bates forty-eight, in the infor- 
mal ballot, while Mr. Lincoln had one hundred and 
two. It was evident that Mr. Seward could not be 
nominated. There were not a sufficient number 
to leave their favorite candidates for him, to secure 
his nomination. But as the result proved, there were 
enough who would leave the men of their choice and 
vote for Mr. Lincoln, to elect him. To them Mr. Lin- 
coln was a compromise candidate, whom they preferred, 
if they could not have the man of their choice. Mr. 
Lincoln was nominated on the third ballot. The scene 
that followed the announcement beggars description. 
Not a storm, but a hurricane of uncontrollable enthu- 
siasm burst from the vast assembly, augmented by 
the multitude waiting outside, who in response to the 
cry of a messenger stationed upon the roof of the 
"Wigwam," " Fire the salute! Abe Lincoln is nomi- 
nated" rent the air with their deafening shouts, while 
the thundering roar of cannon, peal on peal, swelled 
the din into fearful proportions. 

The news was flashed over the wires to Springfield ; 
and, when it was received at the office of the Journal, 
where Mr. Lincoln and a few of his neighbors were 



3^2 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

gathered, the excitement of Chicago was repeated on 
a smaller scale, and the nominee was overwhelmed 
with congratulations. Taking the telegram up, Mr. 
Lincoln remarked : — 

" Well, gentlemen, there is a little woman at our 
house who is probably more interested in this dispatch 
than I am ; and if you will excuse me, I will take it up 
and let her see it." 

The committee of the Chicago Convention officially 
notified Mr. Lincoln of his nomination, at his home 
on the following day. A few citizens, desiring that 
their distinguished townsman should conform to an 
old political custom, on so important an occasion, pur- 
chased a quantity of the choicest liquors they could 
find, and sent them to his house. Mr. Lincoln 
promptly returned them, with the characteristic mes- 
sage : — 

" You know that we never do any such thing at our 
house." 

The correspondent of the "Portland Press," who 
was present, says that, after the official ceremonies 
and formal introductions ended, a servant brought in a 
waiter, containing a large pitcher and several glass tum- 
blers, when " Mr. Lincoln arose, and gravely addressing 
the company, said : ' Gentlemen, we must pledge our 
mutual healths in the most healthy beverage which 
God has given to man — it is the only beverage I have 
ever used or allowed in my family, and I cannot con- 
scientiously depart from it on the present occasion — it 
is pure Adam's ale, from the spring ; ' and, taking a 
tumbler, he touched it to his lips, and pledged them 
his highest respects in a cup of cold water. Of course 



GOING UP HIGHER. $2$ 

all his guests were constrained to admire his consis- 
tency, and to join in his example." 

His neighbors supposed that he would yield his 
temperance principles to the demands of the august 
occasion ; but he was not the man to do that. The 
statesman who dared to oppose his own best friends, 
and say to the world-, " a house divided against itself 
cannot stand," would not sacrifice his principles now 
for a glass of wine. 

He received the honored guests with the simplicity 
and informality for which he was famed, and, after 
assuring them that he had nothing stronger than 
"Adam's ale" in his house, he drank their health in 
the "sparkling beverage." He never performed a 
more independent, consistent, and worthy act than 
that. He stood by his temperance principles just as 
he did by his anti-slavery principles. 

His nomination created the most intense excitement 
and bitterness in the slave States. Threats of seces- 
sion and rebellion came from them with every wind 
that blew. His election in the following November 
was the signal for the southern leaders to prepare for 
civil war and the dissolution of the Union. Before 
Inauguration Day arrived seven of the southern States 
had seceded and organized a southern Confederacy. 
Mutterings of the coming storm were heard. The 
war-cloud was gathering, dark and ominous. The 
thunder of arms was heard in the distance. Beaten 
with the ballot, the champions of slavery resolved to 
conquer with the bullet. War seemed inevitable. 

Mr. Lincoln was overwhelmed with visitors from 
the day of his nomination, until he removed to the 



324 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

White House. All classes, high and low, rich and 
poor, great and little, flocked to see the "tall man elo- 
quent," and shake his hand. Some curious incidents 
occurred, which exhibit the noble qualities of tl 5 
presidential candidate far better than words. Two 
young men entered the Executive chamber of the 
State House, where he received his friends, and lin- 
gered near the door. Observing them, Mr. Lincoln 
approached them, saying : — 

" How do you do, my good fellows ? What can I do 
for you ? Will you sit down ? " 

" We do not care to sit," replied the shorter of the 
two. 

" I am at your service," continued Mr. Lincoln in 
his familiar way, aiming to make the diffident young 
men feel at home. 

" I had some talk with my friend here," continued 
the young man, " about your height, Mr. Lincoln. 
He thinks he is just as tall as you are." 

" Ah ! " responded Mr. Lincoln with a broad smile, 
at the same time scanning the " tall companion," " he 
is long certainly. Let us see about that." He went 
for his cane and returning, said : 

" Here, young man, we'll see who is the longest." 

Placing the end of the cane upon the wall, he said : 

" Come under here, young man. We can settle 
that question in a minute." 

The young man stepped under the cane, and when 
it was carefully adjusted, Mr. Lincoln continued : " Now 
step out and hold the cane while I go under." 

No quicker said than done. 

" He is just my height exactly," he remarked to the 



GOING UP HIGHER. 325 

shorter visitor ; " he guessed with remarkable accu- 
racy." Then taking each of them by the hand with 
words of encouragement, he bade them good by. 

He saw that the two young men were well meaning, 
but verdant, unacquainted with the proprieties of the 
occasion ; but, sooner than have them feel that they 
had insulted his dignity he would measure " height " 
with them a dozen times over. 

An old woman came in to see him " because he 
used to dine at her house when he was on the Circuit." 
Mr. Lincoln could not remember her, until she had 
called his attention, definitely to certain incidents. 

" Oh, yes ; I remember now," he said, shaking her 
hand heartily ; " I hope it is well with you, my dear 
woman." 

" Do you remember that scanty dinner I gave you 
one day ?" 

" No, I am sure I do not remember anything scatit 
at your house." 

" Well, you did have a scanty dinner one day," she 
added. "You came along just as we were through 
dinner, and every thing was eaten up ; so that I had 
nothing to give you but a bowl of bread and milk, and 
you ate it, and when you got up, and I apologized for 
having nothing better, you replied, ' Why, that is quite 
good enough for the President of the United States.' " 

Mr. Lincoln laughed and invoked a blessing on her 
head, fully appreciating the well-meant friendship that 
brought her eight miles on purpose to remind him of 
the " scanty dinner." 

Among his callers was Hannah Armstrong, widow 
of Jack and mother of William ; and a more sincere 



326 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

and worshipful visitor he did not have. " He talked to 
me just as he did when Jack was alive," she said after- 
wards. " I talked to him some time, and was about to 
bid him goocl-by. I had told him that it was the last 
time I should ever see him ; something told me I 
should never see him again ; they would kill him. 
He smiled and said, ' Hannah, if they do kill me, I 
shall never die another death.' Then I bade him good- 
by." 

A grand reception was tendered him in Chicago. 
He observed a little girl approaching very timidly. 
Beckoning to her kindly, he said : " Little girl, what 
will you have ? " 

" I want your name," she hesitatingly replied. Just 
then Mr. Lincoln observed several other little girls 
approaching, and he responded : 

" But here are several other little girls — they would 
feel badly if I should give my name only to you." 

"There are eight of us in all," she answered, "and 
all of us want your name," 

" Then get me eight sheets of paper, with pen and 
ink, and I will see what can be done for you." 

The paper was brought, and Mr. Lincoln sat down 
at a table, in the crowded room, and wrote a line upon 
each sheet, appending his name thereto. 

A little boy of about three years came into the room 
with his father. As soon as he entered, he swung his 
hat, and cried out, " Hurrah for Lincoln ! " The 
people laughed, and Mr. Lincoln, joining them, caught 
up the little fellow and gave him a toss towards the 
ceiling, exclaiming, " Hurrah for you ! " 

These were pleasant episodes to a man of so much 



GOING UP HIGHER. 327 

simplicity and real kindness as Mr. Lincoln possessed, 
in the general reception of dignitaries, — governors, 
statesmen, senators, judges, divines, etc. 

On the sixth of November, Mr. Lincoln was elected 
President by the popular vote of 1,857,610, — 491,634 
votes more than were cast for Mr. Douglas. In the 
Electoral College he received 180 votes, and Mr. 
Douglas only 12; the others being divided between 
Breckinridge and Bell. 

A few days before the election, the Republicans of 
Springfield placed the result of a canvass of Spring- 
field in Mr. Lincoln's hand. He called into the Ex- 
ecutive Chamber Mr. Newton Bateman, Superintendent 
of Public Instruction for the State of Illinois, whose 
office was in the building. Having locked the door, 
he said : — 

" I have called you in to assist me in looking over 
this canvass of Springfield ; I desire to know how the 
ministers and some good people will vote." 

Mr. Bateman assented to his proposition, and pro- 
ceeded to examine the book. Mr. Lincoln frequently 
inquired if such and such a person were not a minister 
or member of the church, to which Mr. Bateman 
replied according to the best of his knowledge. With 
pencil in hand, Mr. Lincoln kept a memorandum. 
When the examination was completed, he sat in silence, 
and with a face full of sadness for several minutes. 
Then, turning to Mr. Bateman, he remarked : — 

" I don't understand it. Here are several ministers, 
of different denominations, against me, and here are 
prominent members of the churches against me. Mr. 
Bateman, I am not a Christian, — God knows, I would 



328 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

be one, — but I have carefully read the Bible, and I do 
not so understand this book," drawing a copy of the 
New Testament from his pocket. After a brief pause, 
he continued : — 

" These men well know that I am for freedom in the 
Territories, freedom everywhere as far as the Constitu- 
tion and laws will permit, and that my opponents are 
for slavery. They know this, and yet, with this book 
in their hands, in the light of which human bondage 
cannot live a moment, they are going to vote against 
me. I do not understand it at all." 

Mr. Lincoln was on his feet, evidently filled with 
emotion over the grave and perilous condition of the 
country. In silence he walked up and down the room, 
going back and forth several times, with deep sadness 
depicted on his face, as if a mighty burden were rest- 
ing on his heart. At length, suddenly stopping in the 
centre of the hall, and lifting his right arm heaven- 
ward, while tears were on his cheek, he exclaimed : — 

" I know there is a God, and that he hates .injustice 
and slavery. I see the storm coming, and I know 
that His hand is in it. If He has a place and work 
for me, I am ready. I am nothing, but truth is every- 
thing. I know I am right, because I know that liberty 
is right. I have told them that a house divided against 
itself cannot stand, and Christ and reason say the 
same ; and they will find it so. Douglas don't care 
whether slavery is voted up or voted down ; but God 
cares, and humanity cares, and I care ; and with God's 
help, I shall not fail. I may not see the end ; but it 
will come ; and I shall be vindicated ; and these men 
will find that they have not read their Bibles aright." 



GOING UP HIGHER. 329 

He spoke much of this as if soliloquizing, and then, 
turning to Mr. Bateman, he added : — 

" Does it not appear strange that men can ignore 
the moral aspects of the contest ? A revelation could 
not make it plainer to me that slavery or the govern- 
ment must be destroyed. The future would be some- 
thing awful, as I look at it, but for this rock on which 
I stand, especially with the knowledge of how some of 
these ministers are going to vote. It seems as if God 
had borne with slavery until the very teachers of 
religion have come to defend it from the Bible, and 
to claim for it a divine character and sanction [re- 
ferring to Drs. Ross and Palmer of the South, of 
whom mention had been made] ; and now the cup 
of iniquity is full, and the vials of wrath will be poured 
out." 

He went on still further, expressing his confidence 
in Divine Providence, declaring that " right is might," 
and that faith in God " is indispensable to successful 
statesmanship ; " and that the support which a public 
man receives from these truths is grander than all 
other support. He freely announced his belief in the 
duty and power of prayer, and intimated that he had 
sought Divine guidance in his solemn and responsible 
position. 

Mr. Bateman responded to him : — 

" I have not supposed that you were accustomed to 
think so much upon this class of subjects. Your 
friends are ignorant of the fact that you entertain such 
pronounced sentiments on these topics as you have 
expressed to me." 

" I am aware of that," Mr. Lincoln answered ; " but 



330 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

I think more on these subjects than upon all others, 
and I have done so for years." 

That Mr. Lincoln was a child of Providence, with- 
out knowing it, led and disciplined for graver respon- 
sibilities than any previous President had ever borne, 
not excepting Washington, is clear to the Bible 
student. His language was that of prophecy, and his 
spirit was that of a Christian hero and martyr. 

Before leaving Springfield for Washington, Mr. 
Lincoln paid his mother and other relatives a visit. 
His mother was living with her daughter, Mrs. Moore, 
at Farmington. " The meeting between him and the 
old lady," says Mr. Lamon, " was of the most affec- 
tionate and tender character. She fondled him as her 
own ' Abe,' and he her as his own mother." 

Mrs. Lincoln returned with her son to Charleston 
that they might enjoy each other's company still 
longer. When the time arrived that Mr. Lincoln must 
leave, both he and his mother were deeply affected. 
Mr. Lamon continues : — 

" The parting between Mr. Lincoln and his mother 
was very touching. She embraced him with deep 
emotion, and said she was sure she should never behold 
him again, for she felt that ' his enemies would assassi- 
nate him.' 

" ' No, no, mother ; they will not do that. Trust in 
the Lord and all will be well ; we shall see each other 
again.' 

" Inexpressibly affected by this new evidence of 
her tender attachment and deep concern for his 
safety, he gradually and reluctantly withdrew from 
her arms, feeling more deeply oppressed by the 



GOING UP HIGHER. 33 1 

heavy cares which time and events were rapidly aug- 
menting." 

Mrs. Lincoln was not alone in her fears that her 
son would come to an untimely end. Neighbors and 
friends in Springfield were equally anxious. 

" They will throw the cars from the track," one 
suggested. 

" Some one will stab him in the crowd," another. 

" He will be poisoned before the fourth of March," 
still another. 

" He will be shot from a housetop on inauguration 
day," a fourth. 

" You ought to take a cook with you from your own 
female friends," suggested a fifth. 

On the eleventh day of February, 1861, Mr. Lin- 
coln left Springfield for Washington with his family. 
A multitude of friends and neighbors gathered at the 
depot for a parting hand-shake. From the platform of 
the cars, he addressed the company. 

"My Friends — No one not in my position can appreciate 
the sadness I feel at this parting. To this people I owe all that 
I am. Here I have lived more than a quarter of a century. 
Here my children were born, and here one of them lies buried. 
I know not how soon I shall see you again. A duty devolves on 
me which is greater, perhaps, than that which has devolved upon 
any other man since the days of Washington. He never would 
have succeeded except for the aid of Divine Providence, upon 
which he at all times relied. I feel that I cannot succeed without 
the same divine aid which sustained him, and on the same 
Almighty Being I place my reliance for support ; and I hope 
you, my friends, will pray that I may receive that divine assist- 
ance, without which I cannot succeed, but with which success is 
certain. Again I bid you all an affectionate farewell." 



332 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

His journey to Washington was signalized by sincere 
demonstrations of respect and honor. His passage 
was like that of a conqueror. From the beginning to 
the end of his journey, it was one splendid ovation. 
At all the cities on the route, he addressed the vast 
multitudes assembled, and his sentiments were eagerly 
caught up and borne over the land ; for the people 
were eager to obtain the least hint of his future policy. 
His speeches were characterized by that thoughtful, 
sound, solid, clear, and logical element that ever dis- 
tinguished his best efforts. 

The presidential party was met at Philadelphia by 
the son of Mr. Seward, with the startling intelligence 
that a plot had been discovered to assassinate the 
President-elect when he passed through Baltimore on 
the following day. Threats of assassination had been 
heard again and again, and now detectives supposed 
that they had discovered a veritable plot, and that 
speedy action alone could thwart the purpose of the 
conspirators. 

A consultation with Mr. Lincoln followed, and it 
was arranged that, instead of going on the presidential 
train the next day, Mr. Lincoln should be taken 
through that night to Washington by the night ex- 
press. At half-past six next morning he reached 
Washington, and the news of his arrival was flashed 
at once over the country by the telegraphic wires. 




CHAPTER XXIV. 

LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 

UR purpose being to see the man Lincoln 
in the highest office, as we saw the boy 
Abraham in his pioneer home, we shall not 
recount his public deeds in overthrowing the 
" Rebellion," which lasted during his entire life in the 
Executive Mansion. His remarkable success in mar- 
shalling the " Union Army " of more than two million 
men, controlling the perilous factions of the country, 
securing the confidence of every true patriot in the 
land, organizing victory upon a thousand battle-fields, 
creating a powerful navy, raising three thousand 
million dollars for the war, restoring the public credit, 
emancipating four million slaves, and restoring peace 
upon a stronger basis than ever, is well known to the 
world. These achievements caused M. Laboulaye to 
exclaim, at the College of France, before an immense 
audience of the elite of the intellectual world, " Mr. 
Lincoln is a greater man than Cesar." To record 
a history of these achievements would require a vol- 
ume instead of two or three chapters, and even then the 
real character of the man might not appear so clearly 
as it does in certain incidents of his presidential 



334 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

career. In his daily life, at the head of the nation, we 
are to find those qualities of mind and heart which 
made him truly great. Incidents will illustrate his 
ability, honesty, patriotism, industry, kindness, self- 
reliance, firmness, tact, wit, genius, magnanimity, and 
influence, far better than declamation. For this reason 
we shall present his presidential career through the 
most instructive incidents of his life in the White 
House. 

Mr. Lincoln was inaugurated on the fourth of March, 
1 86 1. A vast concourse of people assembled at Wash- 
ington to witness the imposing ceremonies. Fears of 
an outbreak and the possible assassination of the 
President led General Scott to provide ample military 
defence of the city. President Lincoln closed his 
inaugural address with the following touching appeal 
to the enemies of the Government : — 

" In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in 
mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The government will 
not assail you. You can have no conflict without being your- 
selves the aggressors. You have no oath registered in heaven 
to destroy the government ; while I shall have the most solemn 
one to preserve, protect, and defend it. I am loath to close. 
We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. 
Though passion may be strained, it must not break our bonds of 
affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every 
battle-field and patriot grave to every living heart and hearth- 
stone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the 
Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better 
angels of our nature." 

On that morning, Mrs. Lincoln relates, he read his 
inaugural address to his family ; and after having read 
it, he requested to be left alone. The door stood ajar, 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 335 

and his friends distinctly heard him in prayer, com- 
mending himself, his country, and his family to the 
care and protection of God. The weight of responsi- 
bility laid upon him was too great for his human heart 
to bear alone. His Cabinet were William H. Seward, 
Secretary of State ; Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of 
the Treasury ; Simon Cameron, Secretary of War ; 
Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy ; Caleb B. Smith, 
Secretary of the Interior ; Montgomery Blair, Post- 
master-General ; and Edward Bates, Attorney-General, 
— a body of advisers with whom the loyal people 
were well pleased. 

A distinguished senator said to President Lincoln, 
just after his inauguration : — 

" You have as difficult a task in hand as Washing- 
ton had, when he took command of the American 
army, and as little to do with." 

" That is true, substantially," replied the President, 
"but then I have larger resources to draw from," a 
reply which showed that a hopeful, discriminating, 
thoughtful man had moved into the Executive 
Mansion. 

" You are right, Mr. President," responded the 
Senator ; " but my remark had reference to the weak 
condition of the government, as the out-going adminis- 
tration left it — no money, no army, no navy, no 
fire-arms, no nothing for you to begin with." 

" But really, I have what is better, the patriotism of 
the loyal people," was the President's just and noble 
reply. Honorable Henry J. Raymond, speaking of a 
leading feature of Mr. Lincoln's administration, said : 
" From the outset his reliance was upon the spirit and 



336 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

patriotism of the people. He had no overweening 
estimate of his own sagacity, he was quite sensible of 
his lack of that practical knowledge of men and affairs 
which experience of both alone can give ; but he had 
faith in the devotion of the people to the principles of 
Republican government, in their attachment to the 
Constitution and the Union, and in that intuitive 
sagacity of a great community which always trans- 
cends the most cunning devices of individual 
men, and in a great and perilous crisis, more re- 
sembles inspiration than the mere deductions of the 
human intellect. At the very outset of his administra- 
tion, President Lincoln cast himself, without reserve 
and without fear, upon this reliance." A man of less 
confidence in the ability and fidelity of the loyal 
people for such a crisis would not have been qualified 
for his position. 

The senator referred to facts with which the country 
was familiar ; that is, that the National Government 
had been under the control of the South, especially 
during the previous administration, and that the 
cabinet had used their opportunity to prepare for civil 
war, by taking possession of its resources, that north- 
ern strength might be diminished. Howell Cobb was 
Secretary of the Treasury under the previous admin- 
istration, and he was a slaveholder from Georgia. 
He left the public treasury without a dollar, and the 
national credit so much impaired that borrowing 
money was difficult, if not impossible. It was supposed 
that he used several million dollars of the public 
money in preparation for the rebellion. John B. 
Floyd was Secretary of War ; and he was a slave- 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 337 

holder from Virginia. He depleted northern arsenals, 
as Cobb depleted the treasury, and sent rifles, 
muskets, cannon, mortars, balls, powder and shells, to 
important posts in the South. The " Memphis 
Appeal," a disloyal journal of Tennessee, said that 
"seven hundred and seven thousand stand of arms, 
and two hundred thousand revolvers, were distributed 
at convenient points in the South, by the action of 
Secretary Floyd, at the commencement of the Re- 
bellion." Isaac Toucey of Connecticut was Secretary 
of the Navy, and though not a slaveholder, he was as 
servile a tool in the hands of rebel manipulators as 
lived ; and he scattered our navy, ninety vessels, so 
widely that it could be of no immediate service to the 
government, when the South should rise up against it. 
Only two vessels of our entire naval squadron remained 
in northern ports when Mr. Lincoln became Presi- 
dent. It was to this discouraging condition of affairs 
that the senator referred in addressing Mr. Lincoln. 
The latter closed the interview by telling a story. 

" Did you read the prophecy which the papers say 
was spoken about my administration ? " asked Mr. 
Lincoln. 

The senator signified that he had not. 

"Well," added Mr. Lincoln, "a prophet foretells 
that my administration will be the reign of steel. To 
which a wag replied, ' Buchanan's was the reign of 
stealing! " 

Mr. Lincoln's humor aided his hopefulness wonder- 
fully in the very embarrassing circumstances in which 
he found the government, and thereby he was all the 
better fitted to rule the nation at such a time. 



338 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

It was very important that a leading Democrat in 
Congress should stand squarely by Mr. Lincoln's ad- 
ministration ; and Senator Douglas, the President's 
old antagonist, was the man, above all others, to do it. 
Therefore Mr. Ashmun, of Massachusetts, called upon 
him on the day after the fall of Sumter, April 14th, 
1 861, just as the President was completing his procla- 
mation and call for seventy-five thousand militia. 

" No man can render greater service to the country 
than yourself now, Mr. Douglas," said Mr. Ashmun ; 
"and I want you to go to the President and assure 
him of your cordial support in all necessary measures 
to subdue the rebellion." 

" Mr. Lincoln has dealt hardly with me, in removing 
some of my friends from office," replied Mr. Douglas, 
"and I don't know as he wants my advice or aid." 

" But Mr. Lincoln followed Democratic precedents 
in such removals," suggested Mr. Ashmun. " How- 
ever, this is a time when the question of saving the 
Union towers above all party affiliations, and you can 
put the country under lasting gratitude to yourself, 
and show the people, also, that, in the hour of national 
peril, you can trample all party considerations under 
your feet." 

" True, very true," responded Mr. Douglas, with 
considerable emotion ; "and no man shall excel me in 
devotion to my country. My whole nature rises up to 
condemn this Rebellion." 

Here, Mrs. Douglas, who was present, joined Mr. 
Ashmun in the most affectionate appeals to her hus- 
band, to take the important step suggested. The result 
was, that Senator Douglas accompanied his friend to 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 339 

the White House, where the two "giants " and former 
antagonists of the West were brought face to face. 
Grasping the President by the hand, Mr. Douglas 
said, — 

" You are my President, Mr. Lincoln, as well as the 
country's." 

The President's heart was touched, and he shook the 
senator's hand heartily, thanking him for his cordial 
support, and assuring him that the administration 
would appreciate his patriotic position. 

"Now permit me' to read to you this important docu- 
ment," added Mr. Lincoln, taking up his proclamation 
in which he called for seventy-five thousand troops ; 
" you understand the situation as well or better than I, 
and you will readily see the wisdom or unwisdom of 
the measure." 

Senator Douglas signified his desire to hear the 
document read. Slowly, seriously, and distinctly Mr. 
Lincoln read it through, when, without waiting to be 
asked, Mr. Douglas said, — 

" Mr. President, I cordially concur in every word of 
that document, except that, instead of the call for 
seventy-five thousand men, I would make it two hun- 
dred thousand. You do not know the dishonest 
purposes of those men as well as I do." 

Turning to a map hanging on the wall, he pointed out 
the many strategic points that should be strengthened 
at once, and closed by adding, that " the Government 
must pursue a firm and warlike course to crush the 
Rebellion." 

On retiring from the President's room, Mr. Ashmun 
said, — 



34° PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"You have done justice to your own reputation and 
to the President ; and the country must know it. The 
proclamation will go by telegraph in the morning all 
over the country, and the account of this interview 
must go with it. I shall send it either in my own 
language or yours. I prefer you should give your own 
version." 

Mr. Douglas consented to write the dispatch, and 
the following day the country knew that he stood side 
by side with Mr. Lincoln in saving the Union. From 
that time until Mr. Douglas died, the President num- 
bered him among his true and tried friends. He 
rendered valuable assistance to Mr. Lincoln in learning 
the plans of the rebels and disclosing their real animus. 
The President regarded his death as a public bereave- 
ment. 

These two incidents disclose the simplicity, hopeful- 
ness, patriotism, wisdom, magnanimity, and freedom 
from a partisan spirit, which proved so helpful to the 
President from the beginning of his rule. 

Mr. Lincoln kept sacred the words of his inaugural 
address — "You can have no conflict without being 
yourselves the aggressors." But when the first gun 
was fired upon Fort Sumter, in Charleston harbor, 
the South became the aggressors. That was on the 
twelfth day of April, 1861. On the previous afternoon, 
General Beauregard, who commanded the rebel forces, 
ordered the commander of the fort — Major Robert 
Anderson — to surrender. The major replied: — 

" My sense of honor and duty compel me to hold the 
fort for my government." 

" Shall you treat the city as a hostile town ? " he was 
asked. 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 34 1 

" Only if I am compelled to do so," was his noble 
reply. 

So careful had the President been of offering any 
provocation to the enemy to fire upon our flag, that he 
sent an unarmed vessel, instead of a man-of-war, with 
supplies to the half-starved garrison ; and the vessel 
was not allowed to deliver the supplies — the rebel 
troops prevented. 

At half-past four o'clock on the morning of the 
twelfth, the bombardment was opened by twelve 
thousand troops, nearly twenty thousand more being 
spectators. It was more than two hours before the 
garrison replied, Major Anderson thus allowing the 
insurgents to prove unmistakably their treasonable 
designs to the world. All through the day and the 
following night, the terrible cannonade was continued, 
the gallant band within the fort standing by their guns 
until the barracks took fire, compelling them to roll 
ninety-six barrels of powder into the sea, and exhaust 
themselves in extinguishing the flames. In the after- 
noon of the thirteenth, the garrison surrendered upon 
terms perfectly satisfactory to Major Anderson, and 
they marched out of the fort with flags flying and 
drums beating, taking all their private property with 
them, and saluting the stars and stripes with fifty guns. 
The enemy had hurled two thousand three hundred and 
sixty-one shot and nine hundred and eighty shells at the 
fort, when it passed into their hands. 

The news of the fall of Sumter flashed over the land, 
and awakened the loyal people to the dangers of the 
hour. The aggressors had settled what the policy of 
the President must be. War against the Government 



342 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

had begun, and the appeal to arms must be accepted. 
Hence the call for seventy-five thousand troops and the 
interview with Mr. Douglas to which reference has 
been made. From that time, President Lincoln was 
occupied in efforts to conquer the Rebellion — creating 
an army and navy ; raising money to carry on warlike 
preparations ; securing necessary legislation, and other 
things indispensable to the national defence. Not the 
least of all his labors was acquainting himself with 
military affairs and the best way of saving the Repub- 
lic. For he was President, and no one else. While 
ever ready to accept advice, and even to seek advice 
from more experienced public servants in both civil 
and military life, by which he shaped or corrected his 
own opinions, he reserved the final decision to himself. 
A leading member of the cabinet remarked, on one 
occasion : 

" The President is his own war-minister. He directs 
personally the movements of the armies, and is fond of 
strategy ; but pays much less attention to official duties 
than is generally supposed." 

It was so with all measures, whether civil or military. 
While the head of each department was left untram- 
melled in his particular work, and was held responsible 
for the proper conduct of its affairs by the President, the 
latter never relinquished his right of judgment. For 
example, in his annual report to Congress, Senator 
Cameron advised arming the slaves that they might 
rise successfully against their masters — a measure that 
had been persistently urged upon the President. As 
Mr. Lincoln reserved the right of supervising affairs, 
knowing that the great public would hold him respon- 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 343 

sible, he carefully read the report. When he came to 
that recommendation, surprised and almost indignant, 
he drew his pen across it, remarking: — 

" This will never do. Secretary Cameron must take 
no such responsibility. That is a question that belongs 
exclusively to me." 

When the public heart was deeply touched by the 
sufferings of our soldiers, who had fallen into the hands 
of the rebels, and righteous indignation was aroused 
over the cruelties of Libby prison and Andersonville, 
there were not wanting public men who advised Mr. 
Lincoln to subject the rebel prisoners in Northern 
prisons to similar treatment by way of retaliation. But 
the proposition outraged his feelings, and he said to 
Mr. Odell: — 

" I can never, never starve men like that. Whatever 
others may say or do, I never can, and / never will, be 
accessory to such treatment of human beings." 

Many Republicans were dissatisfied with Mr. Cam- 
eron as a member of the cabinet, and early in Mr. 
Lincoln's administration, a delegation of bankers from 
Boston and New York waited upon him to urge the re- 
moval of the War Secretary. The President heard them 
through, and was somewhat exercised over the weak- 
ness of their arguments and the persistency of their 
appeals. He cut short the interview by saying : — 

" You talk very glibly, nevertheless I am not con- 
vinced. Now, gentlemen, if you want General Cameron 
removed, you have only to bring me one proved case of 
dishonesty, and I promise you his ' head ; ' but I assure 
you I am not going to act on what seems to me the 
most unfounded gossip." 



v» 



344 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

A congressional committee was appointed to examine 
a newly invented gun, and report upon the same. 
When the report was sent to Mr. Lincoln, who was 
conferring with Hon. Mr. Hubbard of Connecticut, 
upon the subject, he glanced at the voluminous docu- 
ment of many manuscript pages, and said, — 

" I should want a new lease of life to read this through ! " 
Then throwing it upon the table, he added, " Why can't 
a committee of this kind occasionally exhibit a grain 
of common sense ? If I send a man to buy a horse for 
me, I expect him to tell me his points, not how many 
hairs there are in his tail." 

The celebrated case of Franklin W. -Smith and his 
brother, of Boston, who were unjustly arrested, im- 
prisoned and persecuted for months, by a military 
tribunal, on the pretext of defrauding the government, 
is in point. Mr. Lincoln examined the case thoroughly, 
and satisfied himself that the two brothers were inno- 
cent. As soon as he reached that conclusion, he did 
not hesitate to assume the responsibility, and issue the 
following order, without fear or favor : — 

" Whereas, Franklin W. Smith had transactions with the Navy 
Department to the amount of one and a quarter millions of 
dollars ; and whereas, he had the chance to steal a quarter of a 
million, and was only charged with stealing twenty-two hundred 
dollars — and the question now is about his stealing a hundred — 
I don't believe he stole anything at all. Therefore, the record 
and findings are disapproved — declared null and void, and the 
defendants are fully discharged." 

These facts show that the President was firm as he 
was lenient, — when firmness was necessary, and that 
the oft-repeated charge, during his administration, of 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 345 

" having no mind of his own," and being " destitute of 
will power," was without foundation. He could even 
resort to physical force when the exigencies of the 
case demanded it, as the following incident shows: — 

An officer of the army had been cashiered from the 
service. Having prepared an elaborate, written de- 
fence of himself he appeared before the President and 
read it. 

" According to your own statement of the case the 
facts do not warrant executive interference," said Mr. 
Lincoln. 

The officer appeared the second and even the third 
time, going over substantially the same ground in his 
plea ; but with no better success. The President felt 
that he was justly cashiered. 

" I see you are not disposed to do me justice, Mr. 
President," said the officer, at last, insultingly. 

This was too aggravating for the even-tempered 
President ; and, rising from his seat, he seized the 
fellow by his coat collar, and thrust him out of the 
door, saying : 

" Sir, I give you fair warning never to show yourself 
in this room again. I can bear censure, but not in- 
sult ! " 

The officer begged for his papers which he had 
dropped. 

"Begone, sir," replied the President; "your papers 
will be sent to you. I never wish to see your face 
again." 

The second year of his administration brought per- 
sonal sorrow, in addition to the perplexities and trials 
of his office. " I thought the war was all that I could 



346 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

bear, but this great affliction is worse than war," he 
said. His son, Willie, died, and "Tad" was in a dying 
condition at the time. We record the circumstances 
as related to us by Mrs. Rebecca R. Pomroy, a hos- 
pital nurse of rare experience, whose services in 
the family, at the time, were invaluable. Miss Dix 
recommended her to Mr. Lincoln on the last day of 
Willie's mortal life. Mrs. Pomroy had twenty or 
thirty sick soldiers under her charge, and eight of 
them were not expected to live through the day. 
" How can I leave them ? " she said. " It is impos- 
sible." "But you must," answered Miss Dix: "the 
Lord's hand is plainly in it. I shall send for you in 
two hours ; " and she did. 

On arriving at the Executive Mansion, Miss Dix 
conducted her into the green room, where the lifeless 
remains of Willie had just been laid out. Thence, she 
was taken to Mrs. Lincoln's chamber, where she was 
lying quite sick. From Mrs. Lincoln's room she was 
led into an adjoining one where little " Tad " lay in a 
dying condition. The physicians had relinquished all 
hope of his recovery and he was not expected to live 
twenty-four hours. Mr. Lincoln was sitting by him 
"the very picture of despair." "Mrs. Pomroy, Mr. 
President," said Miss Dix. Mr. Lincoln arose, and 
very heartily shook her hand, saying : — 

" I am glad to see you : I have heard of you. You 
have come to a sad house." His deep emotion choked 
further utterance and the tears streamed down his 
careworn cheeks. 

Later both took seats beside "Tad's" cot — one on 
each side. The little sufferer lay unconscious, appa- 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 347 

rently very near death. Soon a telegram from Port 
Hudson was brought to the President. 

"What news?" inquired Mrs. Pomroy. 

" Oh, bad enough ; a terrible battle is going on at 
Port Hudson ; we don't know how it will turn. I hope 
God will give us the victory there : it will be a great 
gain for us." 

"We must pray that God may give us the vic- 
tory," replied Mrs. Pomroy. " There is nothing like 
prayer." 

" True, very true," answered the President. "But 
between this terrible war and this sorrow I am having 
a sad time. Why is it ? Oh, why is it ? " 

Later still the President looked up and inquired : 

" What led you into the hospital service ? You 
appear to be a feeble woman." 

" God called me into the service. I took care of a 
sick husband almost twenty years." 

" What about your family," urged the President ; 
" let me hear about it." 

"My husband and three of my four children are 
now on the other side. My living son is in the army." 

" How- mysteriously God deals with us ! " answered 
Mr. Lincoln. " I trust that He will spare your son, and 
in due time return you both to your home again. But 
was this your call to the hospital service ? " 

"Yes : through this service for my sick family. 
God fitted me to take care of the soldiers, and he has 
wonderfully sustained me by giving me strength far 
beyond the expectation of my friends." 

" How was it," continued the President, now greatly 
interested in her story. "Tell me all about it." 



34S PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"My mother died, and then my brother, and then 
my little daughter, — my only daughter, the light of our 
home — and then two sons, and, last of all, my dear 
husband," Mrs. Pomroy answered calmly, as only a 
trusting Christian woman could. When my husband 
passed away, our little cottage with all its furniture 
had to be sold in order to liquidate debts." 

" How did you live ? " eagerly inquired Mr. Lincoln 
at this point. " Tell me how you could bear so 
much ? " 

" By the grace of God, though I was far from being 
what I ought to have been. My husband and all the 
other dear members of my family died in the triumphs 
of faith, so that I had great reason to be thankful, 
and — " 

"Were you resigned?" interrupted Mr. Lincoln. 

" I was not wholly resigned then." 

" Did you feel rebellious ? " he inquired, still more 
earnestly. 

" Yes ; I knew that ' whom the Lord loveth he 
chasteneth,' but I could not understand it. I did not 
think that He loved me, — I could not. Finally, how- 
ever, I was brought into a higher Christian experience, 
where I could say honestly, ' The Lord gave and the 
Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the 
Lord.'" 

"And how was that brought about?" asked Mr. 
Lincoln, as if he were passing through a similar ex- 
perience. 

Mrs. Pomroy rehearsed how Christian friends inter- 
ested themselves to take her to a camp-meeting, when 
her health was entirely prostrated. They thought 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 349 

that the change of scenes and the smell of the pine 
grove might aid her more than physicians. " And 
there," she added, "my soul was quickened, and I was 
led to see how tenderly God had dealt with me, and 
that his gracious discipline was suited to make me a 
more efficient worker in his vineyard, if I only would 
be true. From that time I have never even doubted 
that God loves me." 

" Can others enjoy a similar experience ? " the Presi- 
dent inquired, "or is yours exceptional?" 

" It is not exceptional, Mr. President ; it is just 
what God promises to all who are willing to be led by 
His will." 

"And how can we know that we are led by His 
will ? " 

" Through sincere, earnest prayer," replied Mrs. 
Pomroy. " Prayer has been everything to me. ' Let 
him that lacketh wisdom, ask of God, who giveth 
liberally, and upbraideth not.'" 

Much more was said in the same spirit, when the 
President reverted again to his own great sorrow, — 
Willie dead and " Tad " not expected to live until 
sunrise, — and the burden of his country's perils 
weighing heavily on his heart. 

" Prayer can do what armies cannot," suggested 
Mrs. Pomroy ; " and never were so many prayers 
offered for a country as are offered for ours, and 
never so many offered for a ruler as are offered for 
you, Mr. President." 

" I know it," answered Mr. Lincoln, deeply moved 
by the thought ; " and it is great encouragement to 
me. Our cause is righteous, and I do believe that 



35° PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

God will give us the victory ; but this slaughtering of 
men is dreadful for both sides." 

Mrs. Pomroy had proposed that he should retire to 
an adjoining room for rest, promising that she would 
call him at the least change in "Tad." 

" Pray for me," he said, as he arose to leave the 
room ; and, looking down mournfully upon the little 
sufferer, he added, " and pray for him, that he may be 
spared, if it is God's will." 

"And you pray yourself," responded Mrs. Pomroy. 
" There is nothing like prayer in trouble : do you not 
think so ? " 

" I surely do," was the President's reply, as he 
retired with weeping eyes and aching heart. . 

Very soon Mrs. Pomroy heard his own voice dis- 
tinctly in prayer, commending himself, his family and 
his country to God. " From that moment," she says, 
" I felt that our cause would triumph. The President 
interceding with God for it assured me." 

Scarcely had he fallen asleep when a messenger 
arrived with a telegram from Port Hudson. It was 
carried directly to his room, when he sprung from the 
bed, and, taking it to the door of the room where 
"Tad" was lying, that he might read it by the gas 
light, his eyes ran over it. 

" Good news ! good news ! Mrs. Pomroy ; Port 
Hudson is ours ! " he exclaimed, forgetting all sorrow 
for the moment. 

" There is nothing like prayer, Mr. President," re- 
sponded Mrs. Pomroy. 

" Yes, there is, praise," he promptly answered : 
" Prayer and praise must go together." 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 35 1 

."Tad" was somewhat improved on the following day 
and he continued to improve, and finally recovered. 
But Mr. Lincoln continued watching by his side for 
three days and nights — he on one side of the cot and 
Mrs. Pomeroy on the other — leaving only at brief 
intervals to recline upon the lounge or bed. His 
public duties were left to Mr. Seward and his private 
secretary. " It seemed as if he could not bear to leave 
' Tad ' for a moment," said Mrs. Pomeroy. 

On the morning of Willie's funeral, Mrs. Pomeroy 
expressed her deep sympathy for him, and called 
his attention to the many prayers going up for him. 
" I am glad to hear that," he answered, wiping his 
tears : " I want they should pray for me. I need 
their prayers, / will try to go to God with my sorrows." 
Subsequently he said, " I wish I had that childlike 
faith you speak of, and I trust that God will give it to 
me." 

On the second night of Mrs. Pomeroy's care of 
" Tad " about eleven o'clock, Mr. Lincoln remarked, 

" You don't know how much good your conversation 
did me last night, Mrs. Pomeroy. I wish you would 
tell me your remarkable experience again." 

She complied with his request, and rehearsed the 
whole of it over again, Mr. Lincoln interrupting her 
occasionally by inquiries, as if he were intent upon 
learning how to bear his own heavy burdens. Still 
again, on the third night, he requested another re- 
hearsal of that Christian experience. Often after- 
wards, when riding to and from the Soldiers' Home, or 
to the hospital where Mrs. Pomeroy's sick soldier boys 
were, he would revert to that experience, and put some 



352 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

question, or say, "It did me so much good." Once 
a senator was going to the Soldiers' Home, where 
Mrs. Pomeroy and "Tad" were at the time; and 
Mr. Lincoln said to him : — 

" I want you should see Mrs. Pomeroy, whose con- 
versation did me so much good. Go and introduce 
yourself to her, and tell her that I want you should 
hear that experience." 

At another time, on the way from the Soldiers' 
Home to the Executive Mansion, he said to Mrs. Pome- 
roy : " I don't know how I shall ever repay you for 
what you have done for me. If I live through the war, 
and retire from public life, I hope to be able to remu- 
nerate you in some way." 

In common with many friends, she warned him one 
day against rebels in Washington who might assassi- 
nate him, when he replied : 

"I am in God's hand; let Him do with me what 
seemeth good to Him." 

He possessed his mother's old Bible, which he read 
so much in his boyhood, and he was wont to read 
it daily, usually just before he took his lunch. He 
would throw himself upon the lounge, and read a few 
moments. One day Mrs. Pomeroy entered his office 
while he was thus reading on the lounge. 

""What portion of the Bible do you like best, Mrs. 
Pomeroy ? " he inquired. 

"The psalms are my favorite," Mrs. Pomeroy an- 
swered. 

" Yes, the psalms have something for every day in 
the week, and something for every poor fellow like 
me," he responded. 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 353 

He was accustomed to carry his mother's Bible back 
and forth from the Soldiers' Home, preferring to read 
from it rather than use another. Speaking of that 
Bible once, he added, " I had a good Christian mother, 
and her prayers have followed me thus far through 
life." Captain Mix, who was often in the family, says: 
— " Many times have I listened to our most eloquent 
preachers, but never with the same feeling of awe and 
reverence, as when our Christian President, his arm 
around ' Tad,' with his deep earnest tone, each morn- 
ing read a chapter from the Bible." 

He inquired very minutely into the method of 
speaking with sick and dying soldiers — what she said 
to them — how they answered her — how many of 
them became Christians ? He accompanied her many 
times to the hospital and witnessed her effective man- 
agement and talked with the soldiers and encouraged 
them. On learning that the managers of the hos- 
pital, who were Roman Catholics, had forbidden the 
Protestant nurses to pray with the soldiers, or read the 
Bible to them, he promptly removed the restriction, 
and allowed the Christian women henceforth to hold 
prayer-meetings, read the Bible to the "boys" and 
pray with them, as much as they pleased, adding : — 
" If there was more praying and less swearing it 
would be far better for our country, and we all need to 
be prayed for, officers as well as privates, and if I was 
near death I think I should like to hear prayer." 

He took a lady to the Soldiers' Home in his carriage 
one morning, with Mrs. Pomeroy, and the horses be- 
came well-nigh unmanageable just where the severe 
shower of the previous night had flooded the road. 



354 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The ladies were very much frightened, and Mr. Lin- 
coln directed the driver to hold one of the horses and 
the footman the other, while he opened the door and 
jumped out. Stripping up his pants to his knees, he 
hastily brought three stones large enough to stand up- 
on, and placing them so that the ladies could step 
upon them, from one to the other, he speedily helped 
them to the side-walk, remarking in a vein of humor, 
" All through life be sure you put your feet in the 
right place, and then stand firm." Then, looking 
down upon his very muddy boots, he said: — "I have 
always heard of Washington mud, and now I shall 
take home some as a sample." 

We have given somewhat in detail these incidents 
from Mrs. Pomeroy's experience, because they present 
so clear a view of the man. His simplicity, tender- 
ness, affection, frankness, freedom from pride and 
ostentation, trust in Providence, and strong religious 
convictions, — all appear unmistakably in these inci- 
dents that cluster about his stay in the White House 
and Soldiers' Home. 

Willie died on Thursday, and, on the recurrence of 
that day for several weeks, Mr. Lincoln shut himself 
up in his room and indulged in excessive grief. Near 
friends spoke to Dr. Vinton of New York, who was 
visiting at Washington, of this practice, and urged him 
to see the President. Accordingly he called upon him 
and told him frankly that it was sinful to indulge in 
such grief. 

" Your son is alive iff Paradise," said Dr. Vinton. 

" Alive ! Alive ! " exclaimed the President, starting 
to his feet ; " surely you mock me." 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 355 

" No, my dear sir, believe me ; Christ himself de- 
clares it." 

Mr. Lincoln looked at him a moment, then throwing 
his arms about the clergyman's neck, and laying his 
head upon his shoulders, sobbed aloud, repeating : 
"Alive? Alive?" 

Dr. Vinton comforted him by the words of Christ, 
and for an hour, labored and prayed with him, closing 
the interview by telling the President : " I have a 
sermon upon this subject which I think might interest 
you." 

" Do send it to me as early as possible," Mr. Lin- 
coln replied. Dr. Vinton forwarded the sermon, and 
the sorrowing President read it over and over, and 
then had it copied that he might enjoy the reading of 
it yet more. A member of the family says : — " From 
that time Mr. Lincoln's views in relation to spiritual 
things were changed." 

Mr. Lincoln was a devoted father, and his great 
love for his children appeared in the White House in 
its tender simplicity, as it did elsewhere. No matter 
what dignitaries were about him, paternal affection 
asserted itself without let or hindrance. The Hon. 
W. D. Kelley, of Philadelphia, says : — 

" His intercourse with his family was as beautiful as 
that with his friends. I think that father never loved 
his children more fondly than he. The President 
never seemed grander in my sight than when, stealing 
upon him in the evening, I would find him with a book 
open before him, as he is represented in the popular 
photograph, with little Tad beside him. There were 
of course a great many curious books sent to him, and 



35 6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

it seemed one of the special delights of his life to open 
those books at such an hour that his boy could stand 
beside him, and they could talk as he turned over the 
pages, the father thus giving to the son a portion of 
that care and attention of which he was ordinarily de- 
prived by the duties of office pressing upon him." 

Mr. Carpenter writes : — " No matter who was with 
the President, or how intently he was absorbed, little Tad 
was always welcome. At the time of which I write, he 
was eleven years old, and of course rapidly passing 
from childhood into youth. Suffering much from an 
infirmity of speech which developed in his infancy, he 
seemed on this account especially dear to his father. 
' One touch of nature makes the whole world kin,' 
and it was an impressive and affecting sight to me to 
see the burdened President lost for the time being in 
the affectionate parent, as he would take the little 
fellow in his arms, upon the withdrawal of visitors, and 
caress him with all the fondness of a mother for the 
babe upon her bosom ! " 

Several weeks after the death of Willie, Mr. Lincoln, 
with several members of his Cabinet, spent a few days 
at Fortress Monroe, watching military operations upon 
the Peninsula. He improved his spare time there in 
reading Shakespeare. One day he was reading 
" Hamlet," when he called to his private secretary : — 

" Come here, colonel : I want to read you a pas- 
sage." The colonel responded, when the President 
read the discussion on ambition between Hamlet and 
his courtiers, and the soliloquy, in which conscience 
debates about a future state. Then he read passages 
from "Macbeth," and finally opened to the third act of 



LIFE n\' THE WHITE HOUSE. 357 

" King John," where Constance bewails her lost boy. 
Closing the book, and recalling the words, — 

" And, father cardinal, I have heard you say 
That we shall see and know our friends in heaven : 
If that be true I shall see my boy again," — 

Mr. Lincoln said : " Colonel, did you ever dream of a 
lost friend, and feel that you were holding sweet 
communion with that friend, and yet have a sad con- 
sciousness that it was not reality ? — just so I dream 
of my boy Willie." Overcome with emotion, he 
dropped his head on the table, and sobbed aloud. 

Beautiful example of paternal love in the highest 
place of the land ! The millions of fathers over whom 
he ruled found in him a worthy father to imitate ! 

President Lincoln's humor often exposed him to 
criticism. His frequent stories often elicited censure. 
Persons who did not understand him charged him 
with being light and trifling, when sadness and sorrow 
were more becoming. There was no ground for this 
censure. Mr. Lincoln told stories in the White House 
just as he did anywhere else. The simplicity of his 
character led him to be, when President, just what he 
was as a friend and neighbor. Then, he told stories 
for two reasons. First, he told them to point and en- 
force the subject in hand. Mr. Herndon, his law-part- 
ner for many years, remarks upon this peculiarity of 
the man : — 

" It is said that Newton saw an apple fall to the 
ground from a tree, and beheld the law of the universe 
in that fall ; Shakespeare saw human nature in the 
laugh of a man ; Professor Owen saw the animal in its 



358 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

claw ; and Spencer saw the evolution of the universe 
in the growth of a seed. Nature was suggestive to all 
these men. Mr. Lincoln no less saw philosophy in a 
story, and a schoolmaster in a joke. . . . The world, 
fact, man, principle, — all had their powers of sugges- 
tion to his susceptible soul. They continually put him 
in mind of something. He was often perplexed to 
give expression to his ideas : first, because he was not 
master of the English language ; and, secondly, because 
there were no words in it containing the coloring, 
shape, exactness, power, and gravity, of his ideas. He 
was frequently at a loss for a word, and hence was 
compelled to resort to stories, maxims, and jokes to 
embody his idea, that it might be comprehended. 

" But more and better than that, in the White House 
he found recreation and relief in story-telling. He 
told them that he read Shakespeare and the ' Nasby 
Papers,' to help him endure the labors of his official 
position. He indulged in wit and humor when he felt 
more like crying. Indeed, he indulged them, often, in 
order to keep from crying. As he said to a member 
of Congress, when he was greatly distressed for the 
country. ' Were it not for this occasional vent I 
should die.' He kept a copy of ' Nasby Papers ' in 
his desk, as an antidote for depression. He found re- 
lief in their perusal. He once said to a friend, ' I think 
of writing to 'Petroleum' to come down here, and I 
shall tell him, if he will impart his talent to me, I will 
swap places with him.' " 

Speaking of this peculiarity of the President, a Con- 
gressman said, "It is his life preserver." He was se- 
verely criticized for it by the journals. Many stories 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 359 

and jokes were ascribed to him, which he never told. 
A volume of them was issued in New York, under the 
title, " Old Abe's Jokes." A friend submitted a copy 
of the work to him, with the request that he should re- 
port how many of the stories were genuine. His report 
was " six "out of the whole number. Still, the attacks 
upon him only elicited more wit. After examining a 
gun so constructed as to prevent the escape of gas, he 
remarked, " I really believe this does what it is repre- 
sented to do. But do any of you know of any machine 
4 or invention, for preventing the escape of gas from 
newspaper establishments ? " At a time when the pub- 
lic journals teemed with assaults upon him, for alleged 
acts and sayings that never occurred, Mrs. Secretary 
Welles called attention to certain reports. "The pa- 
pers are not always reliable" responded one present. 
"That is to say, Mrs. Welles," interjected Mr. Lincoln, 
" they lie, and then they re-lie ! " He " could bear cen- 
sure," as he said, "but not insult." A friend pro- 
posed that he should contradict a particular false report 
in a leading journal ; but he replied, " Oh, no ; if I 
were to try to read, much less answer, all the attacks 
made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any 
other business. I do the very best I know how, — 
the very best I can ; and I mean to keep doing so 
until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what 
is said against me won't amount to anything. If the 
end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was 
right would make no difference." 

His grand magnanimity never appeared to greater 
advantage than it did when, after all his trials with 
General McClellan, before he removed him, and after 



360 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

he had facetiously remarked that he "would like to 
borrow his army if he had no use for it," and given as 
a reason why the General did not reply to the " Chi- 
cago letter," "he is entrenching" — he remarked to 
another, " so pleasant and scholarly a gentleman can 
never fail to secure personal friends. In fact, 

' Even his failings lean to virtue's side.' " 

Also, when Stonewall Jackson fell in battle, and the 
Washington Chronicle spoke well of him as a brave 
soldier but mistaken man, Mr. Lincoln wrote to the 
editor : — 

" I honor you for your generosity to one who, though 
contending against us in a guilty cause, was neverthe- 
less a gallant man. Let us forget his sins over his 
fresh-made grave." 

His humor, kindness, and magnanimity appeared to 
go hand in hand, presenting one of the most unique, 
genial, and remarkable characters ever found in public 
life. 

In this connection his art of putting things deserves 
attention. Mr. Lincoln understood it to perfection ; 
and these remarkable sallies often exposed him to se- 
vere criticisms. For example, the report of the cap- 
ture of a Union brigadier and squad of cavalry, near 
Fairfax Court House, by rebel guerillas, was brought 
to him. The brigadier had proved to be incompetent. 

" I am very sorry to lose the horses," responded the 
President, on receipt of the news. 

"What do you mean?" inquired his informant, 
somewhat startled by his seemingly heartless words. 

" Why," rejoined the President, " I can make a bet- 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 36 1 

ter brigadier any day ; but those horses cost the gov- 
ernment one hundred and twenty-five dollars apiece." 

It was customary for the Secretary of State to write 
the President's speeches to foreign ministers, and, per- 
haps, home delegations. A messenger entered the 
President's room one day, saying, " The Secretary has 
sent the speech you are to make to-day to the Swiss 
minister." Mr. Lincoln received it, smiling, and then, 
as if to ridicule the practice, and intimate that he 
could make his own speeches, he remarked, loud 
enough for all present to hear : — 

" Oh, this is a speech Mr. Seward has written for 
me, is it? I" guess I will try it before these gentle- 
men and see how it goes." He proceeded to read it 
aloud, in a waggish manner, and remarked, as he closed 
it, " There, I like that. It has the merit of originality." 

A delegation from the West waited upon him to 
protest against some of his measures. After having 
listened to their complaints, he answered : — 

" Gentlemen, suppose all the property you were 
worth was in gold, and you had put it into the hands of 
Blondin to carry across the Niagara river on a rope, 
would you shake the cable, or keep shouting out to 
him, 'Blondin, stand up straighter — Blondin, stoop a 
little more — go a little faster — lean a little more to 
the north — lean a little more to the south.' No, you 
would hold your breath as well as your tongue, and keep 
your hands off until he was safe over. The govern- 
ment are carrying an immense weight. Untold 
treasures are in their hands. They are doing the 
very best they can. Don't badger them. Keep 
silence, and we will get you safe across." 



362 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Another delegation came to open his eyes to the 
"breakers ahead." Mr. Lincoln thought they magni- 
fied the perils ; and so he told a story. " You remind 
me of the schoolboy," he said, " who found difficulty 
in pronouncing the Scripture names, ' Shaclrach, 
Meshach, and Abednego.' The teacher had drilled 
him repeatedly in the pronunciation of these names. 
One day the teacher purposely took the same lesson in 
Bible reading, and managed to have this boy read the 
passages, containing these names, again. As the dull 
pupil came to them, he stopped, looked up, and said : 
' Teacher, there's them three fellers ag'in.' " 

A clergyman remarked to him : " The Lord is on 
our side." 

" I am not at all concerned about that," replied Mr. 
Lincoln ; " for I know that the Lord is always on the 
side of the rigid. But it is my constant anxiety and 
prayer that / and this nation should be on the Lord's 
side." 

A whole volume of similar incidents might be fur- 
nished, not one of them showing that Mr. Lincoln was 
thoughtless and trifling ; but, on the other hand, that 
it was his unique, peculiar and pat way of putting the 
case clearly before those who approached him. In his 
felicitous handling of a subject, a story or witticism 
was often more convincing than argument. For this 
reason he employed them. The genius and real ability 
of the man often cropped out through this mode of 
speaking, so peculiarly his own. One of our best 
writers put the literary character of President Lincoln 
and his wonderful tact so tersely before the people that 
we quote it here. It was penned before the death of 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 363 

Mr. Lincoln ; and the paragraph is not only a faithful por- 
trait of the man, but the style of the composition is more 
like his than any piece of composition we have seen : — 

" His questions are answers, and his answers questions ; his 
guesses prophecies, his fulfilment ever beyond his promise ; 
honest yet shrewd ; simple, yet reticent ; heavy, yet energetic ; 
never despairing, never sanguine ; careless in forms, conscientious 
in essentials ; never sacrificing a good servant once trusted, 
never deserting a good principle once adopted ; not afraid of new 
ideas, nor despising old ones ; improving opportunities to confess 
mistakes ; ready to learn ; getting at facts ; doing nothing when 
he knows not what to do ; hesitating at nothing, when he sees 
the right ; lacking the recognized qualities of a party leader, and 
leading his party as no other man can ; sustaining his political 
enemies in Missouri in their defeat, sustaining his political friends 
in Maryland in their victory; conservative in his sympathies, 
and radical in his acts ; Socratic in his style, and Baconian in his 
method ; his religion consisting in truthfulness, temperance ; ask- 
ing good people to pray for him, and publicly acknowledging in 
events the hand of God, — yet he stands before you as the type 
of ' Brother Jonathan,' a not perfect man, and yet more precious 
than fine gold." 

Mr. Lincoln, like Washington, was continually show- 
ing, without design on his part, his sincere trust in 
Providence, as well as his great respect for the insti- 
tutions of Christianity. After a serious defeat of the 
Union forces near Washington, he remarked to a friend, 
" I have done the best I could. I have asked God to 
guide me, and now I must leave the event with him." 
At another time, two hundred members of the Chris- 
tian Commission called upon him, and George H. Stu- 
art spoke, in their behalf, of the debt of gratitude the 
public owed him. Mr. Lincoln replied : — 

" My friends : You owe me no gratitude for what I 



364 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

have done; and I — " (and here he hesitated as if he 
feared being misunderstood in what he was about to 
say) — " and I, I may say, owe you no gratitude for 
what you have done ; just as, in a sense, we owe no 
gratitude to the men who have fought our battles for 
us. I trust that this has been for us all a work of 
duty. All the gratitude is due to the great Giver of 
all good." 

At another time he replied to Dr. J. T. Duryea and 
other members of the Commission as follows : — 

" If it were not for my belief in an over-ruling Prov- 
idence, it would be difficult for me, in the midst of 
such complications, to keep my reason on its seat. 
But I am confident that the Almighty has his plans, 
and will work them out ; and, whether we see it or 
not, they will be the wisest and best for us. I have 
always taken counsel of Him, and referred to Him my 
plans, and have never adopted a course of proceeding 
without being assured, as far as I could be, of his ap- 
probation." 

At another time he said to friends, " I have been 
driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming 
conviction that I had nowhere else to go." And 
again, " I should be the most presumptuous blockhead 
upon this footstool, if I for one day thought that I 
could discharge the duties which have come upon me 
since I came into this place, without the aid and 
enlightenment of One who is wiser and stronger than 
all others." 

In the early part of the war he issued an order for 
the better observance of the Sabbath in the army. In 
the order he said : " The importance for man and 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 365 

beast of the prescribed weekly rest, the sacred rights 
of Christian soldiers and sailors, a becoming deference 
to the best sentiment of a Christian people, and a due 
regard for the Divine Will, demand that Sunday labor 
in the army and navy be reduced to the measure of 
strict necessity." 

The prevalence of profane swearing among the 
soldiers was rebuked in the same order ; and he said : 
" The discipline and character of the national forces 
should not suffer, nor the cause they defend be 
imperilled by the profanation of the day or name 
of the Most High." And he enforced the order 
by the example of Washington, saying: — "At this 
time of public distress, adopting the words of Washing- 
ton in 1776, ' men may find enough to do in the service 
of God and their country without abandoning them- 
selves to vice and immorality.' The first general 
order issued by the Father of his Country after the 
Declaration of Independence indicates the spirit in 
which our institutions were founded and should ever 
be defended : ' The General hopes and trusts that 
every officer and man will endeavor to live and act as 
becomes a Christian soldier defending the dearest 
rights and liberties of his country.' " 

Intemperance in the army he deeply deplored. 
Both by. word and pen he sought to expose the perils 
of drinking habits among officers and privates, es- 
pecially the former. His own example enforced his 
counsels with great power. For he continued to be the 
same uncompromising teetotaller at Washington that he 
had been elsewhere. The White House was run upon 
teetotal principles, as strictly so as his humble home 



366 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

in Springfield. In Washington circles, where the wine 
cup went round, he was always passed by out of re- 
spect to his temperance principles. At one time a 
delegation of the Sons of Temperance waited on him. 
In his reply, he said : " When I was a young man, 
long ago, before the Sons of Temperance, as an organ- 
ization, had an existence, I, in my humble way, made 
temperance speeches ; and I think I can say that 
my example has never belied the position I then took." 
And when he read a petition from the women of 
Massachusetts, praying for the suppression of intem- 
perance in the army, he exclaimed : " Dear, good 
souls ! if they only knew how much I have tried to 
remedy this great evil, they would be rejoiced." 

Notwithstanding his great weight of labors for the 
country, President Lincoln did not wholly neglect 
literary studies. He found necessary recreation in his 
books, and both poetry and prose often brought relief 
to him in seasons of depression and exhaustion. A 
California lady, who, with several other women, visited 
the cemetery at the Soldiers' Home in company with 
Mr. Lincoln, writes : — 

" While we stood in the soft evening air, watching 
the faint trembling of the long tendrils of waving wil- 
low, and feeling the dewy coolness that was flung out 
by the old oaks above us, Mr. Lincoln joined us, and 
stood silent, too, taking in the scene. 

" ' How sleep the brave who sink to rest 
By all their country's wishes blest,' — 

he said softly. 

" There was something so touching in the picture 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 36? 

opened before us, — the nameless grav 

quiet, the tender twilight ai r 

our own feminine di°*- 

suppose, — thai ..ae 

the tc --j the lines 






_ t the graves shall weep, 
nameless heroes calmly sleep.' " 



one day he surprised some of his most intimate 
friends by his very just, discriminating remarks upon 
some of the plays of Shakespeare. 

" There is one passage in the play of ' Hamlet,' " he 
said, " which is very apt to be slurred over by the actor, 
or omitted altogether, which seems to me the choicest 
of the play. It is the soliloquy of the king, after the 
murder. It always struck me as one of the finest 
touches in the world." 

Then, with still more surprise, his friends witnessed 
his truly dramatic exhibition of the scene, as he 
recited the whole passage of nearly forty lines, begin- 
ning:— 

" Oh, my offence is rank, it smells to heaven ; 
It hath the primal eldest curse upon it, 
A brother's murder ! " 

He recited it from memory, throwing himself into 
the scene with remarkable abandon and tact. Then 
he went on : — 

" The opening of the play of ' King Richard III.' 
seems to me often entirely misapprehended. It is 
quite common for an actor to come upon the stage, 
and, in a sophomoric style, to begin with a flourish : — 



368 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

' Now is the winter of our discontent 
Mac' glorious summer by this sun of York, 
And all the clouds that lowered upon our house, 
In the deep bos^. >-af the ocean buried ! ' 

" Now," said he, " this is all wrong. Richard, you 
remember, had been, and was then, plotting the de- 
struction of his brothers, to make room for himself. 
Outwardly the most loyal to the newly crowned king, 
secretly he could scarcely contain his impatience at 
the obstacles still in the way of his own elevation. 
He appears upon the stage, just after the crowning of 
Edward, burning with repressed hate and jealousy. 
The prologue is the utterance of the most intense 
bitterness and satire." 

Then, assuming the character, perhaps without de- 
sign, he repeated Richard's soliloquy with so much 
effect, that Mr. Carpenter, who was present, says : — 
" It seemed like a new creation to me. Though fa- 
miliar with the passage from boyhood, I can truly say 
that never till that moment had I fully appreciated its 
spirit." 

A delegation of the "Christian Commission " waited 
upon him, and, in reply to their address, he said : — 

" I desire, also, to add to what I have said, that 
there is one association whose object and motives I 
have never heard in any degree impugned or ques- 
tioned [a sly rebuke at the unjust criticisms and fault- 
finding that prevailed] ; and that is the ' Christian 
Commission.' And, as Shakespeare says," he added, 
"that is a record, gentlemen, of which you may justly 
be proud." Then, as if to correct himself, he re- 
marked, " I believe, however, it is 'Jack Falstaff ' who 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 369 

talks about 'villainy,' though, of course, Shakespeare 
is responsible." 

The particular circumstances of the country, or 
some phase of his personal experience, appear to have 
been the occasion generally of these and kindred drafts 
upon his literary resources. 

N. P. Willis, the poet, was riding with him one day, 
when some remark or scene drew out the following 
from the poet's " Parrhasius" : 

" Oh, if there were no better hopes than these — 
Were there no palm beyond a feverish fame, — 
If the proud wealth flung back upon the heart 
Must canker in its coffers, — if the links 
Falsehood has broken will unite no more ; 
If the deep-yearning love, that has not found 
Its like in the cold world, must waste in tears; 
If truth, and fervor, and devotedness, 
Finding no worthy altar, must return 
And die of their own fulness ; if beyond 
The grave there is no heaven in whose wide air 
The spirit may find room, and in the love 
Of whose bright habitants the lavish heart 
May spend itself, — what thrice-mock' 'd fools are we/" 

Mr. Willis was both surprised and delighted with 
this evidence of familiarity with his writings, and the 
handsome compliment so gracefully tendered. 

We do not design to speak at length of Mr. Lin- 
coln's mental ability ; that has appeared, incidentally, 
from the beginning of our story. Enough has been 
quoted from his lip and pen to prove that Senator 
Trumbull's brief tribute was not exaggerated, " He is 
a giant ; and without the prefix ' Little ' to it, a giant 
in intellect as well as in stature." In the light of what 



37Q PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

has been said, the words of that noted Englishman, 
Goldwin Smith, are pertinent : " He met the most 
terrible of all emergencies with ability and self-posses- 
sion, as well, probably, as it would have been met by 
any European sovereign or statesman whom you could 
name." 

However, this chapter should not close without his 
eloquent and beautiful address at the dedication of the 
national cemetery at Gettysburg, November 18, 1863. 
Its originality and classic diction must commend it to 
the favorable consideration of the ripest scholars : — 

" Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth 
upon this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedi- 
cated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now 
we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, 
or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. 
We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We are met to 
dedicate a portion of it as the final resting-place of those who 
here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether 
fitting and proper that we should do this. 

" But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot conse- 
crate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and 
dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our 
power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long 
remember what we say here ; but it can never forget what they 
did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to 
the unfinished work that they have thus far so nobly carried on. 
It is rather for us here to be dedicated to the great task remain- 
ing before us — that from these honored dead we take increased 
devotion to the cause for which they here gave the last full 
measure of devotion, — that we here highly resolve that the dead 
shall not have died in vain, that the nation shall, under God, 
have a new birth of freedom, and that the government of the 
people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from 
the earth." 



LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 37 1 

We have intentionally omitted President Lincoln's 
care of the soldiers and colored race during his life in 
the White House, that we might devote a chapter to 
each subject, both on account of the intrinsic impor- 
tance of each, and the clear and interesting view of 
his character which they afford. 




CHAPTER XXV. 

HIS GREAT INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 

ROM the time of President Lincoln's first 
call for troops, his life in the White House 
brought him into intimate relations with 
Union soldiers. At once he bestowed upon 
them his most tender regard, which they reciprocated 
with kindred heartiness. He was called by the endear- 
ing name of "Father Abraham" in the army; and 
they were called by him in the White House, "the 
boys." Our presentation of his public career would 
be very deficient without special attention to his 
fatherly service in their behalf. The controlling 
thought of his mind on this subject was expressed 
in the following words : 

" This extraordinary war in which we are engaged 
falls heavily upon all classes of people, but the most 
heavily upon the soldier. For it has been said, ' all that 
a man hath will he give for his life ' ; and, while all 
contribute of their substance, the soldier puts his life 
at stake, and often yields it up in his country's cause. 
The highest merit, then, is due to the soldier ! " 
He spoke somewhat from experience. His brief 
service in the " Black Hawk War," where the provisions 






HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 373 

for personal comfort were small, made him familiar 
with the hardships of soldier-life. He knew from per- 
sonal experience how many and great privations are 
inseparable from army service ; and no doubt this 
knowledge intensified the natural love in his heart for 
the loyal and patriotic "boys in blue." 

Some public men claimed that the President ought 
not to be interrupted and annoyed by so many applica- 
tions from soldiers and their friends, — that some one 
of the military commissions, or a special one, should 
relieve him of this burden. But he would consent to 
no such arrangement. The " boys " belonged to his 
family, and he would enjoy a fatherly watch over them. 
There was reason for the suggestion, since his daily 
duties as President occupied every moment of his 
time, and, as we have seen, worried and wearied him 
beyond measure. The reader can scarcely understand 
how he could devote any time at all to the soldiers, 
when he reads the following description of his daily 
work, as given by parties who saw him every day. 

" Mr. Lincoln is an early riser, and he thus is able 
to devote two or three hours each morning to his 
voluminous private correspondence, besides glancing 
at a city paper. At nine, he breakfasts ; then walks 
over to the War Office to read such war telegrams as 
they give him, and to have a chat with General Hal- 
leck on the military situation, in which he takes a 
great interest. Returning to the White House, he 
goes through with his morning's mail, in company 
with a private secretary, who makes a minute of the 
reply which he is to make ; and others the President 
retains, that he may answer them himself. Every 



374 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

letter receives attention ; and all which are entitled to 
a reply, receive one, no matter how they are worded, 
or how inelegant the chirography may be. Tuesdays 
and Fridays are cabinet days ; but, on the other days, 
visitors at the White House are requested to wait in 
the ante-chamber, and send in their cards. Some- 
times, before the President has finished reading his 
mail, Louis will have a handful of pasteboard ; and, 
from the cards laid before him, Mr. Lincoln has visitors 
ushered in, giving precedence to acquaintances. Three 
or four hours do they pour in, in rapid succession, 
nine out of ten asking offices ; and patiently does the 
President listen to their application. . . . The 
simple and natural manner in which he delivers his 
thoughts makes him appear to those visiting him like 
an earnest, affectionate friend. At four o'clock, the 
President declines seeing any more company, and 
sometimes accompanies his wife in her carriage to take 
a ride. . . . He dines at six ; and it is rare that 
some personal friends do not grace the round dining- 
table, where he throws off the cares of office, and 
reminds those who have been in Kentucky of the old- 
school gentlemen, who used to dispense generous 
hospitality there." 

Another writer adds : " At night, from ten to twelve, 
he usually makes a tour all round, — now at Secretary 
Seward's, and then at General Halleck's ; and, if Gen- 
eral Burnside was nearer, he would see him each night 
before he went to bed. Those who know his habits, 
and want to see him late at night, follow him round 
from place to place ; and the last search generally 
brings him up at General Halleck's, as he can get the 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 375 

latest army intelligence there. Whoever else is asleep 
or indolent, the President is wide awake and around." 
How a public servant, under such a constant press- 
ure of care, could find time to listen to every complaint 
of soldiers and their friends, many of the cases requir- 
ing much time to investigate, and also visit hospitals 
and go to the front to " see how the boys are getting 
along," the reader can scarcely understand. But he 
did, a? the very interesting incidents we shall relate 
abundantly show. There is evidence that his heart 
was not so thoroughly absorbed in any other depart- 
ment of his work as it was in this. He fully real- 
ized that the life of the nation hung upon the 
life of the soldier — that the appeal from the bal- 
lot to the bullet was a dire necessity — hence, he 
thought, "the highest merit is due to the soldier;" 
and he never belied that sentiment. To the day of 
his death, he treated soldiers as if they were really of 
more consequence, in the fearful crisis, than governors 
and senators. On one occasion, when there was so 
great a crowd at one of his receptions that hand-shak- 
ing was discontinued, the President stood and bowed 
his acknowledgments to senators and representatives ; 
but finally, observing a wounded soldier enter with his 
poorly-clad mother, he hastily left his position, crowded 
his way to the couple, and taking them both by the 
hand, he gave them a most cordial welcome, congratu- 
lating the woman upon having so patriotic a son, and 
expressing his sympathy for the son in his disabled 
condition. It was a very affecting demonstration, and 
it brought tears to the eyes of many spectators. The 
President simply acted what he had said again and 



37^ PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

again, "the highest merit is due to the soldier." All 
who witnessed the hearty greeting were satisfied that 
Mr. Lincoln meant what he said.* 

In this and other incidents to be related, the true 
Republican simplicity of Mr. Lincoln's character ap- 
pears. Official distinction obtruded no barrier between 
his own honest heart and that of the brave and true 
soldier. 

One day he was going through a passageway to his 
private room for a cup of tea, when he heard the cry 
of a child. He returned immediately to his office, and 
rang the bell ; Daniel responded promptly. 

" Daniel, is there a woman with a baby in the ante- 
room ? " 

"There is, Mr. President; and she has been there 
three days," Daniel replied. "There has been no 
chance for her to get in." 

" Go at once, and send her to me," he said, adding 
some words of regret that she had been overlooked. 

The woman, with the baby in her arms, was soon in his 
presence, pleading for her husband, who was sentenced 
to be shot as a deserter from the army. There were 
several extenuating circumstances, and the President 
granted her request, writing his decision upon a slip 
of paper. 

"There, my dear woman," he said, "you take that, 
and it will bring back your husband," at the same time 
directing her where to go with the document. Con- 
vulsive sobs of joy were all the response the glad 
woman could make, as she retired. Daniel went up to 
her, and pulled her shawl, saying, " Madam, it was the 
baby that did it." 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. Z77 

Hon. W. D. Kelley said to the President, " There is 
a lad on the gunboat Ottawa, who has shown the 
mettle of a man in two serious engagements. Can you 
not send him to the naval school ? You have the 
authority to send three boys there annually, who have 
served one year in the navy." 

"Perhaps so," responded the President; "let me 
hear more about it." Mr. Kelley rehearsed, in detail, 
the heroic deeds of the boy. 

" If the appointments for this year have not been 
made, let this boy be appointed," he wrote at once to 
the Secretary of the Navy, passing the message to Mr. 
Kelley. 

The appointment was made ; but it was found the 
lad was not quite fourteen years of age. " I think the 
President can make it right," said Mr. Kelley to him ; 
and he took the lad to Mr. Lincoln. 

" Mr. President," said Kelley, " my young friend, 
Willie Bladen, finds a difficulty about his appointment. 
You have directed him to appear at the school in July, 
and he will not be fourteen until September." Willie 
bowed in a graceful, soldierly way to the President. 

"Bless me!" exclaimed Mr. Lincoln, laying down 
his spectacles; "is that the boy who did so gallantly 
in those two great battles ? Why, I feel I should bow 
to him, and 'not he to me." Then, taking the order 
previously written, he changed it from July to Septem- 
ber ; and putting his hand lovingly on Willie's head, 
he said : 

" Now, my noble boy, go home, and have a good 
time during the two months, for they are about the 
last holiday you will get." 



378 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Willie bowed himself out, remarking to an acquaint- 
ance, " I should like to have a game of romps with that 
man." 

A small, pale, delicate-looking boy waited in the 
crowd to see" the President. Observing him, Mr. Lin- 
coln said, " Come here, my boy, and tell me what you 
want." 

Advancing timidly, the little fellow placed his hand 
on the arm of the President's chair, and said: — 

" Mr. President, I have been a drummer in a regi- 
ment for two years, and my colonel got angry with me, 
and turned me off. I was taken sick and have been a 
long time in the hospital. This is the first time I have 
been out, and I came to see if you could not do some- 
thing for me." 

His plea touched Mr. Lincoln's heart, and he replied 
by asking the boy, — 

" Where do you live, my son ? " 

"I have no home," the lad answered sadly. 

" Where is your father ? " 

" He died in the army some time ago." 

"Where is your mother?" 

" My mother is dead also. I have no father, no 
mother, no brothers, no sisters, and," bursting into 
tears, "no friends — nobody cares for me." 

Mr. Lincoln's eyes filled with tears, and his lips 
quivered for a moment, when he continued, — 

" Can't you sell newspapers? 

" No, I am too weak ; and the surgeon told me I 
must leave the hospital, and I have no money, and no- 
where to go to." 

The President could say no more ; and he drew forth 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 379 

a card, and wrote on it, "Take care of this poor boy," 
directing it to the proper official ; then handed it to 
the lad, whose face lit up with a smile because he had 
found a true friend in the President. 

A citizen of Washington tells the following : — 

" I was waiting my turn to speak to the President 
one day, when my attention was attracted by the sad 
patient face of a woman advanced in life, who in a 
faded hood and shawl was among the applicants for an 
interview. 

" Presently Mr. Lincoln turned to her, saying in his 
accustomed manner, ' Well, my good woman, what can 
I do for you this morning?' 'Mr. President,' said 
she, ' my husband and three sons all went into the 

army. My husband was killed in the fight at . I 

get along very badly since then, living all alone, and I 
thought I would come and ask you to release to me my 
oldest son.' Mr. Lincoln looked into her face a mo- 
ment, and in his kindest accents responded, 'Certainly! 
certainly ! If you have given us all, and your prop has 
been taken away, you are justly entitled to one of your 
boys ! ' He immediately made out an order discharg- 
ing the young man, which the woman took, and thank- 
ing him gratefully, went away. 

" I had forgotten the circumstance," continued 

M , " till last week, when happening to be here 

again, who should come in but the same woman. It 
appeared that she had gone herself to the front, with 
the President's order, and found the son she was in 
search of had been mortally wounded in a recent en- 
gagement, and taken to a hospital. She found the 
hospital, but the boy was dead, or died while she was 



380 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

there. The surgeon in charge made a memorandum 
of the facts upon the back of the President's order, 
and almost broken-hearted, the poor woman had found 
her way again into Mr. Lincoln's presence. He was 
much affected by her appearance and story, and said : 
' I know what you wish me to do now, and I shall do 
it without your asking ; I shall release to you your 
second son.' Upon this, he took up his pen and com- 
menced writing the order. While he was writing, the 
poor woman stood by his side, the tears running down 
her face, and passed her hand softly over his head, 
stroking his rough hair, as I have seen a fond mother 
caress a son. By the time he had finished writing, his 
own heart and eyes were full. He handed her the 
paper : ' Now,' said he, ' you have one and / one of the 
other two left : that is no more than right.' She took 
the paper, and reverently placing her hand again upon 
his head, the tears still upon her cheeks, said : ' The 
Lord bless you, Mr. Lincoln. May you live a thousand 
years, and may you always be the head of this great 
nation !' " 

Hon. Thaddeus Stevens accompanied an elderly lady 
to the President, to ask for the pardon of her son, who 
had been sentenced to death by a court-martial. Mr. 
Stevens knew that there were circumstances on which 
pardon could be reasonably based. After the Presi- 
dent had listened to the woman's story, he turned to 
Mr. Stevens. 

" Mr. Stevens, do you think this is a case that will 
warrant my interference ? " 

" Yes ; I should have no hesitation in granting a 
pardon," Mr. Stevens replied. 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 38 1 

"Then I will pardon him," and he proceeded to exe- 
cute the papers. The mother's heart was too full for 
utterance. Her deep emotion, as she turned away, 
told how deep her gratitude was. On the way down 
stairs, when she could sufficiently control her feelings 
to speak, she broke out suddenly : — 

" I knew it was a copperhead lie ! " 

"What do you refer to, madam?" inquired Mr. 
Stevens. 

" Why, they told me he was an ugly-looking man, 
and it's a lie. He is the handsomest man I ever saw 
in my life." 

Speaker Colfax interceded for the pardon of a son 
of one of his constituents, who had been sentenced to 
be shot. It was in -the evening, and Mr. Lincoln was 
wearied by incessant calls, and wanted rest. He 
granted the request of Mr. Colfax, and said : — 

" Some of our generals complain that I impair 
discipline and subordination in the army by my par- 
dons and respites, but it makes me rested, after a hard 
day's work, if I can find some good excuse for saving 
a man's life, and I go to bed happy as I think how 
joyous the signing of my name will make him and his 
family and his friends." 

Senator Harris, of New York, interceded for the 
reprieve of a young soldier, who was imprisoned at 
Elmira, N. Y., awaiting the sentence of death. His 
friends had been to the Secretary of War to intercede 
for the condemned young man ; but the Secretary only 
replied : — 

" Can do nothing for him ; it is an aggravated case." 

True, it did seem like an aggravated case, for the 



382 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

fellow had deserted three times, and once attempted 
to poison his guards ; but he had been of unsound 
mind. Evidence of his insanity was laid before Sena- 
tor Harris, who became fully convinced that Executive 
clemency ought to save the soldier from death. It 
was twelve o'clock on Wednesday night when the 
senator went to the President, and the soldier was to 
be executed on Thursday. The President was in bed. 
A messenger was sent to his room to announce that 
Senator Harris desired to see him upon important 
business. 

" Let him come in," Mr. Lincoln said. 

Senator Harris was soon at his bedside. " The boy 
is insane," he said; "there can be jio. question about 
it, — an irresponsible lad, and his execution would be 
murder." 

" And you are satisfied that these are the facts in 
the case ? " replied Mr. Lincoln, inquiringly. 

" Perfectly so. Besides, it is not a pardon that we 
ask, but a reprieve until a medical examination can be 
made." 

" Well, that is reasonable and just," responded Mr. 
Lincoln. " The boy shall be reprieved." 

He arose immediately, and ordered a telegram to be 
sent to Elmira at once, delaying the execution of the 
condemned. Early in the morning he sent another. 
And before the hour of execution arrived, he sent four 
telegrams by different lines, fearing that, by some mis- 
fortune, the reprieve might not reach him. 

At another time, Judge Kellogg, of New York, in- 
terceded for the son of one of his neighbors, sentenced 
by court-martial to be shot the next day. It was near 



HIS GREA T INTEREST. IN SOLDIERS. 383 

midnight when he reached the White House, and the 
President had retired. First, however, he went to the 
Secretary of War, thinking he might accomplish his 
purpose without disturbing the President. 

" Too many cases of this kind have been let off 
now," replied the secretary; "it is quite time to make 
an example of somebody." 

" But there are reasons enough for pardoning him," 
urged the judge ; and he proceeded to enumerate 
them. 

"Nevertheless, I shall not interfere," still insisted 
the unmoved secretary. 

"Well, Mr. Secretary," exclaimed the judge, under 
much excitement, " the boy is not going to be shot, you 
may be sure of that." 

He hurried away to the White House, where the 
sentinel intercepted him, saying : — 

" My orders are to admit no one to-night." 

" But I must go in : it is a case of life and death," 
urged the judge, persistently. 

" That fact cannot modify my orders," answered the 
sentinel. 

" I must go in ; and I will take the responsibility," 
continued the judge. And he entered, going directly 
to the President's sleeping-room without the ceremony 
of sending his card. Opening the door, he said, 
hurriedly and excitedly : — 

" Mr. President, a dispatch just received informs 
me that the son of one of my neighbors is to be shot 
to-morrow ; and I want you to save his life." 

" What is he to be shot for ? " inquired Mr. Lincoln. 

" I don't know, and I can't help what he may have 



384 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

done. Why, he is an old neighbor of mine, and I 
can't allow him to be shot," Judge Kellogg continued, 
under increasing heat. 

" Well," answered Mr. Lincoln, " I don't believe that 
shooting him will do him any good. Bring me a pen." 

Without getting out of bed, he wrote a pardon for the 
judge to forward at once to the boy so near his doom. 

Benjamin Owen, a young soldier of Vermont, was 
sentenced to be shot for sleeping at his post. The 
family were plunged into agony by the dreadful tidings. 
For some reason, a reprieve was granted him for sev- 
eral days, when he wrote the following letter to his 
father : 

" Dear Father, — When this reaches you I shall be in 
eternity. At first it seemed awful to me, but I have thought 
about it so much now that it has no terror. They say they will 

not bind me, but that I may meet my death like a man 

You know I promised Jemmy Carr's mother I would look after her 
boy, and when he fell sick I did all I could for him. He was not 
strong when he was ordered back into the ranks, and the day 
before that night, I carried all his luggage, besides my own, on 
our march. Toward night we went in on double quick, and 
though the luggage began to feel very heavy, everybody else was 
tired, too ; and as for Jemmy, if I had not lent him an arm now 
and then he would have dropped by the way. I was all tired out 
when I came into camp, and then, it was Jemmy's turn to be 
sentry, and I would take his place ; but I was too tired, father, I 
could not have kept awake if I had had a gun at my head. But 
I did not know it until — well, until it was too late. . . . Our 
good colonel would save me if he could. He says, forgive him, 
father, he only did his duty. And don't lay my death against 
Jemmy. The poor boy is broken-hearted, and does nothing but 
beg and entreat them to let him die in my stead. I can't bear to 
think of mother and sister. Comfort them, father ! God help 
me, it is very hard to bear ! Good-by, father ! God seems near 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 385 

and dear to me ; not at all as if he wished me to perish forever, 
but as if he felt sorry for his poor, sinful, broken-hearted child, 
and would take me to be with him and my Saviour, in a better, 
better life ! God bless you all ! 

His sister, who had read much about the President's 
tender heart, seized the letter, and quickly as steam 
could carry her was in Washington, in the presence of 
Mr. Lincoln. 

"Well, my child, what do you want so bright and 
early this morning ? " the President asked. 

" My brother's life," she said, with much emotion. 

" Who is he ? " 

She told him, and for what he was sentenced to be 
shot. 

t " Oh, yes, that fatal sleep," responded Mr. Lincoln ; 
"thousands of lives might have been lost by that 
sleep." 

" So my father said ; but he was so tired carrying 
Jemmy's baggage ;" and here she put his letter into 
the President's hand, saying that "would tell him all 
about it." 

Mr. Lincoln read Benjamin's letter; when, with tear- 
ful eye and melted heart, he quickly wrote an order for 
his pardon, and, lest there might be some delay in the 
conveyance of the message, he ordered his own car- 
riage and delivered it personally to the proper authori- 
ties. Before leaving his office, however, he said to the 
sister : 

"Go home, my child, and tell that father of yours, 
who could approve his country's sentence, even when 
it took the life of a child like that, that Abraham Lin- 
Coin thinks the life far too precious to be lost." 



386 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

He ordered a furlough for the soldier-boy, also, that 
he might return with his sister to Vermont ; and when, 
subsequently, brother and sister came to the White 
House, the President, in his private room, fastened a 
badge of office upon his shoulder, saying, "the shoulder 
that could carry a sick comrade's baggage, and die for 
it so uncomplainingly, must wear that strap." 

The father of a soldier applied to Congressman 
Kellogg, of whom we have spoken, for the pardon of 
his son, under sentence of death. Mr. Kellogg felt that 
it was a case where executive clemency ought to be 
exercised ; and he said to the distressed father, " you 
wait here until I go and see what can be done." 
He went directly to President Lincoln, and laid the 
case before him. When he reached that part of 
the narrative which related to a fearful charge 
across a bridge, wherein the soldier displayed re- 
markable heroism, Mr. Lincoln started up, and asked 
earnestly : — 

"Do you say that the young man was wounded?" 
as if he were overjoyed to find a decent reason for 
saving another life. 

" Yes, badly wounded," added Mr. Kellogg. 

"Then he has shed his blood for his country?" sug- 
gested Mr. Lincoln. 

" Yes, and shed it nobly," responded Mr. Kellogg. 

" Kellogg ! " continued the President, brightening up, 
" is there not something in the Bible about the shed- 
ding of blood for the remission of sins?" 

" I think you are right," replied Mr. Kellogg. 

"Well, it is a good point, and there is no going be- 
hind it," rejoined the President. And, taking up his 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 387 

pen, he wrote a pardon, which Mr. Kellogg bore to the 
now glad father. 

With all his leniency towards erring soldiers and his 
passion for granting pardons, he had no patience with 
rebel sympathizers in places of trust. When Alexander 
Long, of Ohio, proposed, in the House of Representa- 
tives, to recognize the Southern Confederacy, General 
Garfield sprang to his feet, and denounced the " treason " 
in words of bitter detestation, comparing the author of 
the proposition to Benedict Arnold, who betrayed his 
country in the hour of its peril, and entreating loyal 
representatives not to believe that another such 
"growth on the soil of Ohio deformed the face of 
nature, and darkened the light of God's day." When 
news of this speech reached the President, he ex- 
pressed his approbation in the most unqualified man- 
ner, and subsequently thanked General Garfield for 
"flaying Long alive." 

At one time the President called upon the head sur- 
geon at City Point, and told him that he wanted to 
visit all the hospitals there, and shake hands with 
every soldier, as incidentally referred to on a former 
page. 

" Do you know what a job you have undertaken, Mr. 
President ? " responded the surgeon. 

"How many have you in the hospitals?" Mr. Lin- 
coln asked. 

" From five to six thousand," answered the surgeon ; 
" and you will be exhausted long before you get through 
all the wards." 

Mr. Lincoln smiled as he continued, " I think I am 
quite equal to the task. At any rate, I can try and go 



388 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

as far as I can. I shall never see the boys again, 
probably, and I want they should know how I ap- 
preciate what they have done for the coifntry." 

The tour of the hospitals began, the surgeon leading 
the way, and the President stopping at every cot, ex- 
tending his hand, with words of greeting to one, sym- 
pathy to another, and a kind inquiry of some — all 
glad to take his hand. In his rounds, he approached 
a cot on which lay a rebel soldier. Before the Presi- 
dent had time to extend his hand the repentant soldier 
extended his, bursting into tears, and saying, " Mr. 
Lincoln, I have long wanted to see you, and ask your 
forgiveness for ever raising my hand against the old 
flag." 

Mr. Lincoln wept, as he shook the penitent's hand 
kindly, assuring him of prompt forgiveness. And this 
recalls his remark to a public man who was complain- 
ing of his Amnesty Proclamation. " When a man is 
sincerely penitent for his misdeeds, and gives satisfac- 
tory evidence of the same, he can safely be pardoned, 
and there is no exception to the rule." The last clause, 
which we have put in italics, expresses the true Gospel 
idea of forgiveness better than most sermons of twenty 
pages. 

After the tour of the hospitals had been made, and 
the President had seated himself in the surgeon's office, 
word came that, "one of the wards was overlooked, 
and the boys want to see the President." 

"You are thoroughly tired, Mr. President, and so 
am I," said the surgeon, "and you had better not go; it 
will make no difference." 

"But I must go," Mr. Lincoln replied; "I would 



HIS CREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 389 



not knowingly omit one, and the boys will be so dis- 
appointed if they do not see me." 

He went, and completed the hand-shaking for that 
day, which consumed several hours, and returned per- 
fectly satisfied, because he had carried joy and comfort 
to the " brave boys " whom he loved as a father. 

His letters and public documents abound in expres- 
sions which show that the soldiers, officers and privates, 
were borne upon his mind constantly. He was invited 
to attend a large meeting in New York in honor of 
General Grant. He closed his reply with these 

words : — 

" He and his brave soldiers are now in the midst of 
their great trial ; and I trust that at your meeting 
you will so shape your good words that they may turn 
to men and guns moving to his and their support." 

He closed his letter, accepting his second nomina- 
tion, with the following : — 

" I am especially gratified that the soldiers and sea- 
men were not forgotten by the convention, as they 
forever must and will be remembered by the grateful 
country, for whose salvation they devote their lives." 

If the people would but remember the soldier, they 
might withhold some of their praise for himself ! 

News of the bloody slaughter of the " boys " always 
filled the heart of the President with grief. 

"Terrible! terrible!" 

How often this expressive word dropped from his 
lips ! Often he could neither eat nor sleep, his soul 
was so wrought upon by bad news from the front. 
When the tidings of defeat with very heavy loss, in 
the Wilderness battles, reached him, he exclaimed :— 



39° PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" My God ! my God ! Twenty thousand poor souls 
sent to their account in one day ! I cannot bear it ! 
I cannot bear it ! " 

One morning, Secretary Seward found him walking 
his room with a most distressed appearance in his face, 
when he inquired if the President was not well. 

" This dreadful news from the boys has banished 
sleep and appetite," he answered. " Not a moment's 
sleep last night, nor a crumb of food this morning!" 

It was the grief of a father over his fallen sons, — 
sincere and tender as that of a mother. 

At another time, the news of a heavy loss in a hard- 
fought battle caused him to bury his face in his hands, 
saying : — 

" I shall never more be glad ! " 

Dr. Holland says of Mr. Lincoln and the soldiers: — 

"With the soldiers "who were fighting the battles of 
the country, he had the deepest sympathy. Whenever 
he was congratulated upon a success, he never failed 
to allude gratefully to the noble men who had won it. 
The trials of these men, — their sacrifices of comfort 
and health, of limb and life, — touched him with a 
sympathy that really sapped the foundations of his 
constitution. They were constantly in his thoughts ; 
and not a battle was fought to whose sacrifices his own 
vitality did not contribute. He admired the fighting 
man, and looked upon him as, in one sense, his supe- 
rior. Although he did not plead guilty to the weakness 
of moral cowardice, he felt that the battle-field was a 
fearful place, from which, unaided by its special in- 
spirations, he should run. Indeed, Mr. Lincoln did 
not give himself credit for the physical courage which 



HIS GREAT INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 39 1 

he really possessed, though he had probably grown 
timid with his failing strength. 

" This sympathy with the soldiers he manifested in 
many ways, and in none more than in the treatment 
of their offences against military law. In a letter 
to the author, a personal friend of the President 
says : ' I called on him one day in the early part 
of the war. He had just written a pardon for a 
young man who had been sentenced to be shot, for 
sleeping at his post as a sentinel. He remarked as 
he read it to me : — 

" ' I could not think of going into eternity with the 
blood of the poor young man on my skirts.' Then 
he added : — 

" ' It is not to be wondered at that a boy, raised on a 
farm, probably in the habit of going to bed at dusk, 
should, when required to watch, fall asleep ; and I can- 
not consent to shoot him for such an act.' 

" This story with its moral is made complete by 
Rev. Newman Hall, of London, who, in a sermon 
preached after and upon Mr. Lincoln's death, says 
that the dead body of this youth was found among the 
slain on the field of Fredericksburg, wearing next his 
heart a photograph of his preserver, beneath which 
the grateful fellow had written, ' God bless President 
Lincoln ! ' From the same sermon another anecdote 
is gleaned, of a similar character, which is evidently 
authentic. An officer of the army, in conversation 
with the preacher, said : ' The first week of our com- 
mand, there were twenty-four deserters sentenced by 
court-martial to be shot, and the warrants for their 
execution were sent to the President to be signed. 



392 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

He refused. I went to Washington and had an inter- 
view. I said : " Mr. President, unless these men are 
made an example of, the army itself is in danger. 
Mercy to the few is cruelty to the many." 

" ' Mr. General,' he replied, ' there are already too 
many weeping widows in the United States. For 
God's sake, don't ask me to add to the number, for I 
won't do it.' " 

As Dr. Holland intimates, President Lincoln was 
deeply impressed by deeds of daring, and he never 
lost sight of officer or private who distinguished him- 
self in raid or battle. At a time when he was very 
much depressed in consequence of defeats, instead of 
victories, to the national arms, the news of successes 
in the Department of the West was brought to him. 
The battle of Chickamauga had been fought, and the 
bravery and exploits of General Garfield were rehearsed 
to him, such as his daring ride from General Rosecrans 
to General Thomas, and bringing supplies up the Big 
Sandy to his hungry soldiers. 

" How is it," inquired Mr. Lincoln of an army 
officer who was present at the time, " that Garfield did 
in two weeks what would have taken one of your 
regular officers two months to accomplish ? " 

" Because he was not educated at West Point, as I 
was," replied the officer, laughingly, thinking the 
President designed to slur West Point graduates. 

" No, that was not the reason," retorted Mr. Lincoln. 
" It was because, when he was a boy, he had to work 
for a living." 

He made Garfield a major-general for his courage, 
tact, and efficiency ; and when, a few months later, 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 393 

Ohio proposed to transfer him to Congress, and Gar- 
field objected, the President said : — 

" By all means, send him here. We need just such 
a man of military experience and skill in Congress." 

He was often moved by the tales of sacrifice on the 
part of parents, wives, and sisters. He seemed to 
enter really into the feelings of patriotic mothers and 
wives, who cheerfully parted with their dear ones for 
the sake of their country. He was told of a mother 
in Boston who had lost five sons in battles, and he 
immediately sat down and wrote the following letter 
to her : — 

"Executive Mansion, Washington, Nov. 21, 1864. 
" Dear Madam : — I have been shown, in the files of the War 
Department, a statement of the Adjutant-General of Massachu- 
setts, that you are the mother of five sons, who have died gloriously 
on the field of battle. I feel how weak and fruitless must be any 
words of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the 
grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from 
tendering to you the consolation that may be found in the thanks 
of the Republic they died to save. I pray that our Heavenly 
Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave 
you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the 
solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice 
upon the altar of freedom 

" Yours very sincerely and respectfully, 

"Abraham Lincoln. 

" To Mrs. Bixby, Boston, Massachusetts." 

His deep interest in the Union army caused him to 
hail every organization in behalf of the sick and 
wounded soldiers. The Sanitary Commission, the 
Christian Commission, and all soldiers' aid societies, 
won his heart. Any measure or enterprise that would 



394 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

carry comfort to the " boys " commanded his undivided 
support. In a speech at the close of a very successful 
fair in Washington, for the benefit of soldiers, he 
said : — 

" In this extraordinary war, extraordinary developments have 
manifested themselves, such as have not been seen in former 
wars ; and among these manifestations nothing has been more 
remarkable than these fairs for the relief of suffering soldiers 
and their families. And the chief agents in these fairs are the 
women of America. I am not accustomed to the use of the 
language of eulogy ; I have never studied the art of paying 
compliments to women ; but I must say that, if all that has been 
said by orators and poets, since the creation of the world, in 
praise of women were applied to the women of America, it would 
not do them justice for their conduct during this war. I will 
close by saying, God bless the women of America ! " 

He was invited to preside at a meeting of the Chris- 
tian Commission in Washington, but a pressure of 
duties prevented even his attendance. He wrote, 
however, to the chairman of the committee : — 

"While, for reasons which I deem sufficient, I must decline to 
preside, I cannot withhold my approval of the meeting, and its 
worthy objects. Whatever shall be, sincerely and in God's name, 
devised_ for the -good of the soldiers and seamen in their hard 
spheres of duty, can scarcely fail to be blessed. And whatever 
shall turn our thoughts from the unreasoning and uncharitable 
passions, prejudices, and jealousies incident to a great national 
trouble such as ours, and to fix them on the vast and long-endur- 
ing consequences, for weal or for woe, which are to result from 
the trouble, and especially to strengthen our reliance on the 
Supreme Being for the final triumph of the right, cannot but be 
well for us all." 

These earnest words voice not only his abiding 
interest in the loyal army, but also his equally abiding 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 395 

confidence that God would give final victory to the 
right. 

For the purpose of emphasizing his sympathy with 
the boys at the front, he attended soldiers' fairs in 
Baltimore and Philadelphia. Three years before he 
was obliged to pass through the former city in dis- 
guise to escape assassination. In its streets the Mas- 
sachusetts Sixth had met with a bloody reception, on 
its wsy to protect Washington, and left some of its 
heroic members dead. The city was then a hot-bed of 
treason. But a great change had been wrought there, 
and the chief attraction of the Soldiers' Fair was the 
presence of Mr. Lincoln. Alluding to the remarkable 
change that had been wrought he said, in his ad- 
dress, — 

" Calling to mind that we are in Baltimore, we 
cannot fail to note that the world moves. Looking 
upon the many people I see assembled here to serve 
as they best may the soldiers of the Union, it occurs 
to me that three years ago those soldiers could not 
pass through Baltimore. I would say, blessings upon 
the men who have wrought these changes, and the 
women who have assisted them ! " 

In both these places, he spoke of the loyalty and 
sufferings of the " boys " with fatherly tenderness, and 
eulogized the women of the land for their self-denying 
and philanthropic labors in their behalf. 

The proceeds of the Fair at Philadelphia amounted 
to one million three hundred thousand dollars, a result 
over which the President became enthusiastic. When 
he was told that the fairs in eleven cities netted nearly 
five million dollars he exclaimed :— - 



39 6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Was there ever such a country for patriotism and 
liberality ? How much suffering will be prevented 
among the brave boys ! " 

When he was told that the Sanitary Commission, 
within ten days after the terrible battle of Antietam, 
sent 28,763 pieces of dry goods, shirts, towels, bed- 
ticks, pillows, etc. ; 30 barrels of old linen, bandages, 
and lint ; 3,188 pounds of farina ; 2,620 pounds of con- 
densed milk ; 5,000 pounds of beef -stock and canned 
meats ; several tons of lemons and other fruit, crackers, 
tea, sugar, rubber-cloth, tin-cups, and 4,000 sets of 
hospital clothing ; all of which was tenderly distributed 
among the wounded by the scores of volunteer agents 
of the Christian Commission, language was not an 
ample vehicle to convey his overflowing gratitude ; his 
unbidden tears told how full of joy his heart was. 

We have said that Mr. Lincoln was opposed to the 
war-rule of retaliation ; but the suffering of our soldiers 
in Libby Prison, at Andersonville, Belle Isle, and at 
other points in the South, caused him to modify his 
views, and declare for retaliation, at least, under cer- 
tain circumstances. 

The investigation of the Congressional Committee 
on the "Conduct of the War," confirmed the most 
harrowing reports from rebel prisons, over which Mr. 
Lincoln's heart bled, and his indignation was aroused. 
Speaker Colfax said of him, " I doubt if his most inti- 
mate associate ever heard him utter bitter or vindic- 
tive language. He seemed wholly free from malignity 
or revenge, from ill-will or injustice." But the bar- 
barous treatment of his "boys," who were prisoners in 
Southern stockades, came very near upsetting his 






HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 397 

famous motto, " With malice towards none ; with 
charity for all." He could endure censure and even 
insult, and, " attacked ever so sharply, never answered 
railing for railing," but his whole soul was stirred over 
the treatment of Union soldiers by their captors. 

The letter of Surgeon Chapel, who had charge of 
the "West's Buildings Hospital," Baltimore, to which 
many of our soldiers were sent, on returning from 
Southern prisons, caused him to weep, as if the suf- 
ferers were members of his own family. The letter 
was addressed to the Chairman of the Congressional 
Committee, and was as follows : — 

" Dear Sir, — I have the honor to enclose the photograph 
of John Breiring, with the desired information written upon it. I 
am very sorry your committee could not have seen these cases 
when first received. No one, from these pictures, can form a 
true estimate of their condition then ; not one in ten was able to 
stand alone ; some of them so covered and eaten by vermin that 
they nearly resembled cases of small-pox, and so emaciated that 
they were really living skeletons, and hardly that, as the result 
shows, — forty out of one hundred and four having died up to this 
date. If there has been anything so horrible, so fiendish, as this 
wholesale starvation, in the history of this satanic Rebellion, I 
have failed to note it. Better the massacres of Lawrence, Fort 
Pillow, and Plymouth, than to be thus starved to death by inches, 
through long and weary months." 

Mr. Lincoln could not consent to the starvation of 
rebel prisoners, nor to any approximation to cruel 
treatment. Retaliation must take some other form, or 
he would not endorse it. His real sympathy with sol- 
diers, in their hardships and perils, extended even to 
rebel prisoners in our hands. At Frederick, Md., he 
visited a house in which there were a large number of 



39§ PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Confederate wounded men. After viewing the scene, 
he said to them: — 

" I should be pleased to take you all by the hand, if 
you have no objections. The solemn obligations which 
we owe to our country and posterity compel the 
prosecution of this war. Many of you, no doubt, 
occupy the attitude of enemies through uncontrollable 
circumstances. I bear no malice toward you, and can 
take you by the hand with sympathy and good feel- 
ing." 

There was hesitation at first, but it was soon broken, 
and the Confederates stepped forward to shake the 
President's hand. Some of the number were too badly 
wounded to rise ; Mr. Lincoln approached them, and, 
taking each one by the hand in turn, remarked, — 

" Be of good cheer, boys, and the end will be well. 
The best of care shall be taken of you." 

It was a touching scene, and there were few dry 
eyes present. Many of the Confederates wept. It was 
evidently unexpected treatment to them. This was 
the kind of retaliation in which President Lincoln 
fully believed. It caused him unpleasantness and pain 
to be compelled to depart from it. He heartily en- 
joyed such a scene as was described to him after the 
battle of Antietam. 

One of the agents of the Christian Commission 
found several wounded Confederate soldiers in a barn- 
yard, deserted by their surgeons, and no one near to 
help them. They had been lying there with the 
dead for three days, without food or drink. The agent 
hurried food to them as soon as possible, and, with 
others, was proceeding to wash them when one of the 



HIS GREA T INTEREST IN SOLDIERS. 399 

number, from whose feet he was pulling his dirty 
stockings, began to cry violently. 

"What's the matter? Do I hurt you ?" inquired 
the agent. 

" No, you don't," sobbed the man. 

" What, then, can be the matter ? Really, I can't go 
on with my work unless you tell me what is the 
matter." 

"Matter enough," ejaculated the Confederate. 
" You call us rebels, and I suppose we are ; for I 
fought against the old flag ; but, when we are wounded, 
you come to us here, not like angels, but like the 
Lord Jesus Christ himself, washing our feet ; and I 
can't stand it. I can't stand it." 

Such treatment of enemies just suited Mr. Lincoln. 
The rehearsal of that single incident made him happy 
for a whole day. 

In the light of such facts, W. H. Herndon, Esq., 
of Springfield, 111., was right in saying, — 

"Through his perceptions, — the suggestiveness of 
nature, his originality, and strength ; through his 
magnificent reason, his understanding, his conscience, 
his tenderness, and kindness, his heart, rather than 
love, — he approximated as nearly as most human 
beings in this imperfect state to an embodiment of the 
great moral principle, ' Do unto others as ye would 
they should do unto you.' " 

Thousands of the brave men who honored and 
loved Abraham Lincoln sleep on Southern soil. They 
went down to the graves of heroes from a thousand 
battle-fields, through four long, bloody, dreadful years ; 
and no heart throbbed with truer sympathy for them 



400 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

in their sufferings than the heart of the President ; 
and no eyes shed hotter tears for their loss than his. 
And when the nation's offering was complete, and 
there were no more human sacrifices to be laid upon 
the altar of liberty on gory fields, and the country was 
jubilant over the final victory and the return of peace, 
the chieftain himself was added to the hecatomb of 
loyal men, the tears and lamentations of a loving and 
afflicted people consecrating the unparalleled sacrifice ! 
Well may the Grand Army of the Republic cherish 
the memory of their heroic leader, whose thoughts 
were ever with them on the field of conflict. How 
ring his beautiful words, " The mystic chords of memory, 
stretching from every battle-field and patriot grave to 
every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad 
land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when 
again touched, as surely they will be, by the better 
angels of our nature ! " 




CHAPTER XXVI. 

HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 

HRESIDENT LINCOLN'S life in the White 
House was distinguished by his work for 
the colored race. So providential and im- 
portant were his relations to both free and 
enslaved negroes, that justice could not be done to him 
or the subject without a separate exhibit of his work 
for them. He was, not only "The Saviour of his 
Country," but, also, "The Liberator of a Race." 
While his great purpose was to save the Union, giv- 
ing freedom to the slaves became absolutely necessary. 
He expressed his views in the following clear, forcible 
and characteristic way, after three years of war : — 

" I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing 
is wrong. I cannot remember when I did not see, think and feel 
that it was wrong, and yet I have never understood that the 
Presidency conferred upon me an unrestricted right to act of- 
ficially upon this judgment and feeling. ... I could not feel that, 
to the best of my ability, I had tried to preserve the Constitution, 
if, to preserve slavery or any minor matter, I should permit the 
wreck of the government, country and Constitution altogether. 
... I claim not to have controlled events, but confess plainly 
that events have controlled me. Now, at the end of three years' 
struggle, the nation's condition is not what either party or any 



402 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

man devised or expected ; God alone can claim it. Whither it is 
tending seems plain. If God now wills the removal of a great 
wrong, and wills, also, that we of the North as well as you of the 
South shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, impartial 
history will find therein new cause to attest and revere the justice 
and goodness of God." 

His memorable letter to Horace Greeley contained 
the following passages, which will appear more and 
more remarkable as the ages roll on : — 

"If there be those who would not save the Union unless they 
could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them. 

If there be those who would not save the Union unless they 
could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with 
them. 

My paramount object is to save the Union, and not either to 
save or destroy slavery. 

If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do 
it —if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it — 
and if I could do it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I 
would also do that. 

What I do about slavery and the colored race, I do because it 
helps to save the Union, and what I forbear, I forbear because I 
do not believe it would help to save the Union. 

I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts 
the cause, and I shall do more whenever I believe doing more 
will help the cause. 

I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors, and I 
shall adopt new views as fast as they appear to be true views. 

I have here stated my purpose according to my view of official 
duty, and intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal 
wish that all men everywhere could be free." 

For independent thought, invincible purpose, clear- 
ness of expression, model composition, and lofty senti- 
ment, the foregoing was never excelled by American 
statesmen. 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 403 

With these principles and aims, Mr. Lincoln grap- 
pled with slavery — the real cause of the Rebellion — 
and, finally, enlisted nearly two hundred thousand 
negroes as soldiers in the Union army, and gave liberty 
to every slave in the land. 

Sojourner Truth was introduced to Mr. Lincoln as 
having " come all the way from Michigan to see you." 

"I am very much pleased to see you," responded 
Mr. Lincoln, rising from his seat, and shaking the old 
lady's hand cordially. "Take a seat." 

"Mr. President," replied Sojourner, " when you first 
took your seat I feared you would be torn to pieces, 
for I likened you unto Daniel, who was thrown into 
the lions' den ; and if the lions did not tear you in 
pieces, I knew that it would be God that had saved 
you ; and I said if he spared me I would see you before 
the four years expired, and He has done so, and now I 
am here to see you for myself." 

" I am truly glad that you have been spared to see 
this day," answered Mr. Lincoln. 

" I appreciate you, for you are the best President 
who has ever taken his seat," added the old lady. 

" I suppose you refer to the emancipation of your 
race," responded the President. 

For half an hour the conversation continued with as 
much cordiality and politeness on the part of the Presi- 
dent as he would have shown to the most refined white 
woman in Washington. 

At one time he learned that Frederick Douglas, the 
distinguished ex-slave, was in Washington; and he 
sent his carriage to his boarding-place, with the mes- 
sage : " Come up and take tea with me." 



404 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Mr. Douglas accepted the invitation ; and, for the 
first time in the history of our country, a colored 
man became an invited guest in the Executive 
Mansion. Mr. Douglas said of that interview, sub- 
sequently : — 

" Mr. Lincoln is one of the few white men I ever 
passed an hour with, who failed to remind me in some 
way, before the interview terminated, that I am a 
negro." 

The children of Concord, Mass., sent a memorial to 
him, praying for the freedom of all slave children. He 
replied to it as follows : — 

" Tell those little people I am very glad their young 
hearts are so full of just and generous sympathy, and 
that while I have not the power to grant all they ask, 
I trust they will remember that God has ; and that, as 
it seems, He wills to do it." 

A citizen of Washington entered the President's 
office one day, and found him counting greenbacks. 

"This is something out of my usual line," Mr. Lin- 
coln remarked ; " but a President of the United States 
has a multitude of duties not specified in the Constitu- 
tion or acts of Congress." 

The gentleman responded courteously, hinting that 
he would like to know what special duty was connected 
with that pile of greenbacks. 

" This money belongs to a poor negro, who is a 
porter in the Treasury Department, at present very 
sick with the small-pox. He is now in the hospital, 
and could not draw his pay because he could not sign 
his name. I have been to considerable trouble in 
overcoming the difficulty, and getting it for him, and 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 405 

cutting red tape, as you newspaper men say. I am 
now dividing the money, and putting by a portion, 
labelled, in an envelope, with my own hands, according 
to his wish." Thus the kind-hearted man had turned 
aside from grave official duties to assist and comfort 
one of the humblest of God's creatures in his suffer- 
ings and sorrow. 

A delegation of colored men from Louisiana waited 
upon the President to ask for some additional rights. 

" I regret, gentlemen, that you are not able to 
secure all your rights, and that circumstances will not 
permit the government to confer them upon you. I 
wish you would amend your petition so as to include 
several suggestions which I think will give more effect 
to your prayer, and, after having done so, please hand 
it to me." 

" If you will permit me," replied the chairman of 
the delegation, " I will make the alterations here." 

" Are you, then, the author of this eloquent pro- 
duction ? " inquired Mr. Lincoln. 

" Whether eloquent or not, it is my work," was the 
modest reply ; and the negro took his seat by the 
President's side, and made the alterations suggested. 
A Southern gentleman present concluded that Mr. 
Lincoln did not know that the delegation from Louisi- 
ana were " black men." 

The rebel government inflicted inhuman barbarities 
upon Union colored soldiers at Port Hudson, Morris 
Island, and other places. The knowledge of the 
harrowing facts reaching the President, he immediately 
issued the following proclamation for the protection of 
colored soldiers : — 



406 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Executive Mansion, July 30, 1863. 

" It is the duty of every government to give protection to its 
citizens, of whatever class, color, or condition, especially those 
who are duly organized as soldiers in the public service. The 
law of nations, and the usages and customs of war, as carried on 
by civilized powers, permit no distinction as to color in the treat- 
ment of prisoners of war as public enemies. To sell or enslave 
any captured person on account of his color, and for no offence 
against the laws of war, is a relapse into barbarism, and a crime 
against the civilization of the age. The Government of the 
United States will give the same protection to all its soldiers ; 
and if the entmy shall sell or enslave any one because of his 
color, the offence shall be punished by retaliation upon the 
enemy's prisoners in our possession. It is, therefore, ordered, 
that for every soldier of the United States killed in violation of 
the laws of war, a rebel soldier shall be executed ; and for every 
one enslaved by the enemy, or sold into slavery, a rebel soldier 
shall be placed at hard labor on the public works, and continued 
at such labor until the other shall be released and receive the 
treatment due to a prisoner of war. 

"Abraham Lincoln. 

" By order of the Secretary of War. 

" E. D. Townsend, Adjutant-General." 

Here, again, is proof of Mr. Lincoln's genuine in- 
terest in the soldiers. Retaliation was a war measure 
from which he shrank ; his whole nature condemned 
it. And yet he adopted it, in the circumstances, as a 
dire necessity, to protect the soldier. In no case 
would he consent to starve or torture rebel prisoners 
by way of retaliation ; but he did consent to take life 
for life. 

President Lincoln often expressed his admiration of 
the bravery and loyalty of colored soldiers, and once 
he said to Judge J. T. Mills, of Wisconsin : — 

" There have been men base enough to propose to 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 407 

me to return to slavery the black warriors of Port 
Hudson and Olustee, and thus win the respect of the 
masters they fought. Should I do so, I should deserve 
to be damned in time and eternity. Come what will, 
I will keep my faith with friend and foe." 

He was applied to for the pardon of a slave-dealer 
sentenced to five years' imprisonment and a fine of a 
thousand dollars. He had served the five years in 
Newburyport prison, Massachusetts, and was now held 
because he could not pay the fine. Parties interceded 
for the prisoner, and bore from him a very touching 
letter to the President. After having listened to the 
slave-dealer's advocate, and read his piteous letter, Mr. 
Lincoln said : — 

" That is a very pathetic appeal to my feelings. You 
know my weakness is to be, if possible, too easily moved 
by appeals for mercy, and if this man were guilty of 
the foulest murder that the arm of man could perpe- 
trate, I might forgive him on such an appeal ; but the 
man who could go to Africa, and rob her of her children, 
and sell them into interminable bondage, with no other 
motive than that which is furnished by dollars and 
cents, is so much worse than the most depraved mur- 
derer, that he can never receive pardon at my hands. 
No! He may rot in jail before he shall have liberty by 
any act of mine." 

Before General Wadsworth was killed in the battle 
of the Wilderness, he wrote to Mr. Lincoln and in- 
quired, "if universal amnesty should not be accom- 
panied with universal suffrage in the event of complete 
success in the field." 

Mr. Lincoln replied : " How to better the condition 



408 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

of the colored race has long been a study which has 
attracted my serious and careful attention; hence I 
think I am clear and decided as to what course I shall 
pursue in the premises, regarding it a religious duty, 
as the nation's guardian of these people who have so 
heroically vindicated their manhood on the battle-field, 
where, in assisting to save the life of the Republic, 
they have demonstrated in blood their right to the 
ballot, which is but the humane protection of the flag 
they have so fearlessly defended." 

The reverence of the colored people for President 
Lincoln was always great, but its climax was reached 
when the proclamation of emancipation was issued. 
At one of his receptions, a large number of colored 
people gathered about the Executive Mansion, and 
waited two hours for the crowd of white visitors to pass. 
At length, they timidly advanced to the reception- 
room, as if doubting whether they would be welcome, 
when Mr. Lincoln met them with one of his sweetest 
smiles, and encouraged them to take his hand. Their 
joy was unbounded, and they gave vent to their feel- 
ings in the wildest manner. An eye-witness says, 
" They laughed and wept, and wept and laughed, — 
exclaiming through their blinding tears, ' God bless 
you!' 'God bless Abraham Lincoln!' 'God bless 
Massa Linkum ! ' " 

Miss Canedy, of Fall River, Mass., was teaching the 
colored people at Norfolk, Va., and in her school-room 
was a plaster bust of Mr. Lincoln. One day she 
showed it to some colored men who were at work 
around the building, remarking about their benefactor. 
Their exclamations were as follows : — 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 409 

" He's brought us safe through the Red Sea." 

"He looks as deep as the sea himself." 

"He's king of the United States." 

"He ought to be king of the world." 

" We must all pray to the Lord to carry him safe 
through, for it 'pears like he's got everything hitched 
to him." 

" There has been a right smart praying for him, and 
it must n't stop now." 

President Lincoln's entrance into Richmond, after 
the rebel forces were driven out, was the signal for 
great rejoicing among the colored people. He entered 
the conquered city on foot, attended only by " Tad " 
and the sailors who rowed him up the James river. So 
quiet and unpretentious was his advent, that the ne- 
groes were taken by surprise ; and, when they found 
that the "Great Emancipator" was actually there, their 
joy knew no bound. Some of them shouted; many of 
them cried; all of them were frantic with delight. 
"Glory to God!" "Glory!" "Glory!" "Glory!" was 
the hearty tribute of the liberated slaves. 

" I thank you, dear Jesus, that I behold President 
Linkum," exclaimed a woman on the street, crying 
like a child. 

"Bless de Lord! Bless de Lord! Bless de Lord!" 
exclaimed several, jumping up and down as if bereft of 
their reason. 

An eye-witness says, " An old negro cried out, ' May 
de good Lord bless you, President Linkum ! ' while he 
removed his hat, and the tears of joy rolled down his 
cheeks. The President removed his own hat, and 
bowed in silence ; but it was a bow which upset the 



410 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

forms, laws, customs, and ceremonies of centuries. It 
was a death shock to ' chivalry,' and a mortal wound 
to caste." 

Colonel McKaye, Robert Dale Owen, and one or 
two other gentlemen, were appointed by President 
Lincoln to investigate the condition of the freedmen 
on the coast of North Carolina. When they reported 
to Mr. Lincoln, Colonel McKaye related the following 
incident, as given by Mr. Carpenter: — 

" He had been speaking of the ideas of power enter- 
tained by these people. He said they had an idea of 
God, as the Almighty, and they had realized in their 
former condition the power of their masters. Up to 
the time of the arrival among them of the Union forces, 
they had no knowledge of any other power. Their 
masters fled upon the approach of our soldiers, and 
this gave the slaves a conception of a power greater 
than that exercised by them. This power they called 
'Massa Linkum.' 

" Colonel McKaye said that their place of worship 
was a large building which they called ' the praise 
house ; ' and the leader of the meeting, a venerable 
black man, was known as 'the praise man.' On a 
certain day, when there was quite a large gathering of 
people, considerable confusion was created by different 
persons attempting to tell who and what ' Massa Lin- 
kum ' was. In the midst of the excitement the white- 
headed leader commanded silence. ' Brederin,' 'said 
he, 'you don't know nosen' what you'se talkin' 'bout. 
Now, you just listen to me. Massa Linkum, he ebery- 
whar. He know eberyting.' Then, solemnly looking 
up, he added, ' He walk de earf like de Lord /' 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 411 

" Colonel McKaye told me that Mr. Lincoln seemed 
much affected by this account. He did not smile, as 
another man might have done, but got up from his 
chair, and walked in silence two or three times across 
the floor. As he resumed his seat, he said, very im- 
pressively : ' It is a momentous thing to be the instru- 
ment, under Providence, of the liberation of a race.' ' 

The colored people of Baltimore presented the 
President with a very costly and beautiful copy of the 
Bible. Three colored clergymen and two laymen were 
the committee to present it. The address accompany- 
ing the gift was tender and reverential, to which Presi- 
dent Lincoln replied in a characteristic speech, in which 
he said of the Bible : — 

" It is the best gift which God has ever given to 
man. All the good from the Saviour of the world is 
communicated to us through this book. But for that 
book we could not know right from wrong. All those 
truths desirable for men are contained in it. I return 
you my sincere thanks for the very elegant copy of the 
great Book of God which you present." 

The Bible bore the following inscription : — 

" To Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, the 
friend of Universal Freedom. From the loyal colored people of 
Baltimore, as a token of respect and gratitude. Baltimore, July 
4th, 1864." 

A colored woman of Philadelphia presented him with 
a collection of wax-fruits, with an ornamented stem- 
table — an elegant affair. Her pastor, Mr. Hamilton, 
made the presentation address, but closed by saying, 
" perhaps Mrs. Johnson would like to say a few words." 



412 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

What Mrs. Johnson did is best told in her own words: 
" I looked down to the floor, and felt that I had not a 
word to say, but after a moment or two, the fire began 
to burn (laying her hand on her breast), and it burned 
and burned till it went all over me. I think it was the 
Spirit, and I looked up to him and said : ' Mr. Presi- 
dent, I believe God has hewn you out of a rock, for 
this great and mighty purpose. Many have been led 
away by bribes of gold, of silver, of presents ; but you 
have stood firm, because God was with you, and if you 
are faithful to the end, he will be with you.' With his 
eyes full of tears, he walked round and examined the 
present, pronounced it beautiful, thanked me kindly, 
but said: 'You must not give me the praise — it be- 
longs to God.' " 

Some public men desired Mr. Lincoln to issue his 
Proclamation of Emancipation long before he did. 
Delegations waited upon him to express their wishes in 
that direction. To a delegation of clergymen from Chi- 
cago, who urged the measure upon him, he replied : — 

" I do not want to issue a document that the whole 
world will see must necessarily be inoperative, like the 
Pope's bull against the comet." 

After some discussion, however, he assured them 
that "the subject was upon his mind night and day, 
more than any other; " and he added, "Whatever shall 
appear to be God's will, I will do." 

He called a special Cabinet meeting two or three 
weeks before the battle of Antietam, and announced 
to the members : — 

"I have prepared a proclamation of emancipation, 
believing that the time has come to issue it. I have 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 413 

not called you together for advice on the general sub- 
ject, for I have settled that, I simply desire to inform 
you of my purpose, and receive such suggestions as 
you may make." 

The members were somewhat surprised, but ex- 
pressed a strong desire to hear it read. The President 
proceeded to read it in a slow, clear voice, evidently 
impressed with the grave responsibility he was taking 
upon himself. When he had finished reading the 
document, and opened the way for suggestions, Secre- 
tary Chase remarked : 

" I would like to have the language stronger with 
reference to arming the blacks." 

"I think it is bad policy to issue it now," said the 
Attorney General. "It will cost the administration 
the fall elections." It was then about the first of Sep- 
tember, 1862. 

"All these questions I have carefully considered, 
gentlemen," was Mr. Lincoln's response. 

Secretary Seward remarked, at this point : — 

"Mr. President, I approve of the proclamation, but 
I question the expediency of its issue at this juncture. 
The depression of the public mind consequent upon 
our repeated reverses is so great that I fear the effect 
of so important a step. It may be viewed as the last 
measure of an exhausted government — a cry for help 
— the government stretching forth its hand to Ethio- 
pia, instead of Ethiopia stretching forth its hand to 
the government — our last shriek on the retreat. I 
think it would be best to delay it until it can be given 
to the country supported by military success, rather 
than after the greatest disasters of the war." 



41 4 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"That is a thought that has not occurred to me," 
immediately replied the President, " I shall adopt the 
suggestion at once, and await a signal victory." 

Before the discussion ceased, however, Secretary 
Seward made another suggestion : — 

" Mr. President, I think that you should insert, after 
the word 'recognize,' the words 'and maintain.'" 

" I have fully considered the import of that expres- 
sion," answered Mr. Lincoln; "but it is not my way 
to promise more than I am sure I can perform, and I 
am not prepared to say that I can 'maintain ' this." 

" Nevertheless that ground should be taken," con- 
tinued the Secretary. "The dignity of the government 
and the completeness of the proclamation require it." 

After a moment of serious thoughtfulness, the Presi- 
dent responded, " You are right, Seward, and the words 
shall go in." 

The proclamation was laid aside until the battle of 
Antietam was fought. Mr. Lincoln waited until he 
was satisfied that a valuable victory had been achieved, 
when he called the Cabinet together again, at a special 
meeting, and announced : — 

" The time has come for emancipation to be declared ; 
it cannot longer be delayed. Public sentiment will now 
sustain it, many of my warmest friends and supporters 
demand it, and I promised my God I would do it." 

The last sentence was not quite understood by Sec- 
retary Chase, who asked for an explanation. Mr. 
Lincoln replied: — 

" / made a solemn vow before God, that if General 
Lee was driven back from Pennsylvania, I would crown 
the result by the declaration of freedom to the slave" 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 415 

The Cabinet unanimously endorsed the President's 
decision, and the proclamation was issued September 
22, 1862, promising, " That on the first day of January, 
in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred 
and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any 
State, or any designated part of a State, the people 
whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United 
States, shall be then, thenceforward and forever, free ; 
and the executive government of the United States, 
including the military and naval authority thereof, will 
recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, 
and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or 
any of them, in any efforts they may make for their 
actual freedom." 

This proclamation offended many anti-slavery friends 
at the North, who wanted the President to strike an 
immediate and fatal blow at the institution, without 
warning or conditions. It is believed, however, that sub- 
sequent events caused them, and the civilized world, to 
concur in the President's judgment of the best method, 
in the circumstances. At the South, the excitement 
over the proclamation of promised freedom was intense, 
and the Rebel Congress enacted some violent threats. 
But the one hundred days of grace passed by, and the 
memorable first day of January, 1863, arrived, bringing 
the Proclamation of Emancipation, which deserves 
the highest place in the temple of American liberty. 
It merits the careful perusal of every citizen of the 
United States, old and young, and commends itself to 
the friends of humanity in every land. 

President Lincoln signed the Proclamation after his 
public reception on January first, 1863. Mr. Colfax 
remarked to him, — 



41 6 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"The signature appears somewhat tremulous and 
uneven." 

" Not because of any uncertainty or hesitation on 
my part," answered the President; "but it was just 
after the public reception, and three hours' hand- 
shaking is not calculated to improve a man's chi- 
rography. The South had fair warning, that if they 
did not return to their duty, I should strike at this pillar 
of their strength. The promise must now be kept, 
and I shall never recall one word." 

Mr. Carpenter's noble conception of a painting to 
commemorate the act of Emancipation enlisted the 
President's deepest interest. When the work was 
nearly completed, the artist remarked to him, — 

" I am very proud to have been the artist to have 
first conceived the idea of the design of painting a 
picture commemorative of the Act of Emancipation." 

"Yes," answered the President, "as affairs have 
turned, it is the central act of my administration, and 
the great event of the nineteenth century." 

When Mr. Carpenter's work was done, and he was 
about to take leave of the White House, the President 
said, — 

" Well, Mr. Carpenter, I must go with you and take 
one more look at the picture before you leave us." 

The parting interview with the artist before the 
picture was very interesting ; and President Lincoln 
closed it in his familiar way, by saying: — 

" Mr. Carpenter, I believe that I am about as glad 
over the success of this work as you are." 

This chapter would be incomplete without the 
Proclamation of Emancipation, which must ever be a 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 41^ 

memorable document in the future history of our 
country. We furnish it complete : — 

" Whereas, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a pro- 
clamation was issued by the President of the United States, con- 
taining, among other things, the following, to wit : 

" That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one 
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves 
within any State, or designated part of a State, the people whereof 
shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be 
then, thenceforth and forever free, and the Executive Govern- 
ment of the United States, including the military and naval 
authorities thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of 
such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, 
or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual 
freedom. 

" That the Executive will, on the first day of January afore- 
said, by proclamation, designate the States and parts of States, 
if any, in which the people therein respectively shall then be in 
rebellion against the United States, and the fact that any State, 
or the people thereof, shall on that day be in good faith repre- 
sented in the Congress of the United States by members chosen 
thereto, at elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters 
of such States shall have participated, shall, in the absence of 
strong countervailing testimony, be deemed conclusive evidence 
that such State or the people thereof are not then in rebellion 
against the United States." 

" Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United 
States, by virtue of the power in me vested as Commander-in- 
chief of the Army and Navy of the United States in time of ac- 
tual armed rebellion against the authority and Government of the 
United States, and as a fit and necessary war measure for sup- 
pressing said rebellion, do, on this first day of January, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, 
and in accordance with my purpose so to do, publicly proclaimed 
for the full period of one hundred days from the day of the first 
above-mentioned order, designate, as the States and parts of 



4l8 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

States wherein the people thereof respectively are this day in re- 
bellion against the United States, the following, to wit : Arkansas, 
Texas, Louisiana, except the parishes of St. Bernard, Plaque- 
mines, Jefferson, St. John, St. Charles, St. James, Ascension, 
Assumption, Terre Bonne, Lafourche, St. Mary, St. Martin and 
Orleans, including the City of New Orleans, Mississippi, Ala- 
bama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and 
Virginia, except the forty-eight counties designated as West Vir- 
ginia, and also the counties of Berkeley, Accomac, Northampton, 
Elizabeth City, York, Princess Ann, and Norfolk, including the 
cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth, and which excepted parts are, 
for the present, left precisely as if this proclamation were not issued. 

" And by virtue of the power, and for the purpose aforesaid, I 
do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said 
designated States, and parts of States, are, and henceforward 
shall be free ; and that the Executive Government of the United 
States, including the Military and Naval authorities thereof, will 
recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons. 

" And I hereby enjoin upon the people so declared to be free, 
to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary self-defence, and 
I recommend to them that in all cases, when allowed, they labor 
faithfully for reasonable wages. 

" And I further declare and make known that such persons of 
suitable condition will be received into the armed service of the 
United States to garrison forts, positions, stations, and other 
places, and to man vessels of all sorts in said service. 

"And upon this, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, war- 
ranted by the Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the 
considerate judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Al- 
mighty God. 

" In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, and caused 
the seal of the United States to be affixed. 

" Done at the City of Washington, this first day of 
January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight 

y ' 'J hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of 
the United States of America the eighty-seventh." 

" By the President : " Abraham Lincoln. 

"William H. Seward, Secretary of State." 



HIS WORK FOR THE COLORED RACE. 419 

Speaker Colfax said of Mr. Lincoln and his procla- 
mation, when the great man died : — 

" The great act of the mighty chieftain, on which his 
fame shall rest long after his frame shall moulder away, 
is that of giving freedom to a race. We have all been 
taught to revere the sacred characters. Among them 
Moses stands pre-eminently high. He received the law 
from God, and his name is honored among the hosts of 
heaven. Was not his greatest act the delivering three 
millions of his kindred out of bondage ? Yet we may 
assert that Abraham Lincoln, by his proclamation, 
liberated more enslaved people than ever Moses set 
free, and those not of his kindred or his race. Such a 
power, or such an opportunity, God has seldom given 
to man. When other events shall have been forgot- 
ten ; when this world shall have become a network of 
republics ; when every throne shall be swept from the 
face of the earth ; when literature shall enlighten all 
minds ; when the claims of humanity shall be recog- 
nized everywhere, this act shall be conspicuous on the 
pages of history. We are thankful that God gave to 
Abraham Lincoln wisdom and grace to issue that 
proclamation, which stands high above all other papers 
which have been penned by uninspired men." 




CHAPTER XXVII. 

STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 

|R. LINCOLN was renominated for a second 
term in the summer of 1864. There were 
not wanting leaders who opposed his re- 
nomination. He was too slow and too kind 
to suit them. But their opposition was short-lived. 
When the National Convention assembled in Balti- 
more, the current of enthusiasm for Mr. Lincoln swept 
away all opposition. Intelligence from the army proved 
that one feeling pervaded the rank and file, — the 
" boys " demanded the renomination of " Father Abra- 
ham." The colonel of a regiment on the Potomac, in 
which were many Democrats, reported a conversation 
among his men, as follows : — 

"Who are you for, Joe?" inquired one of a Demo- 
crat. 

" Father Abraham, of course ; a new man would up- 
set things," was the reply. 

" Who knows but a new man might hurry up the 
end of this Rebellion !" interjected another. 

"But we know who we have now for President," re- 
sponded the Democrat ; " but when you have a new man 
you must wait to find out." 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 421 

"That's so," loudly answered a comrade • " no time 
for an armistice now." 

" Soldiers think too much of Lincoln to swap him off 
now for somebody else," remarked another. 

And so the discussion proceeded, until a German, 
who had remained a silent listener, spoke : 

" I goes for Fader Abraham," he said. " Fader Abra- 
ham, he likes the soldier-boy. Ven he serves tree 
years he gives him four hundred dollar, and re-enlists 
him von veteran. Now Fader Abraham, he serve four 
years. We re-enlist him four years more, and make 
von veteran of J rim." 

The German settled the question in that regiment ; 
and it was about a fair representation of the feeling 
throughout the Union army. 

In the convention, the votes of every State except 
Missouri were cast for Mr. Lincoln. Her twenty-two 
votes were cast for General Grant, but, immediately 
upon the announcement of the ballot, they were trans- 
ferred to Mr. Lincoln. 

In less than two months after his renomination, the 
President resolved to issue a call for five hundred 
thousand more troops. On laying the subject before 
his Cabinet, objections were provoked at once. 

" It will prove disastrous," said one. 

" It will defeat your re-election, Mr. President," sug- 
gested another. 

" It will furnish material for your enemies to use 
against you ; the people are tired of the war," added 
the first-named speaker. 

For quite a while the measure was discussed ; and 
the President listened with his accustomed deference, 



422 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

occasionally dropping a word. At length, however, he 
settled the matter beyond controversy. Rising from 
his .seat, and assuming that commanding attitude so 
usual when he was about to make a noble stand, he 
remarked, with profound seriousness, as well as em- 
phasis : — 

" Gentlemen, it is not necessary that I should be 
re-elected, but it is necessary that our brave boys at 
the front should be supported, and the country saved. 
I shall call for five hundred thousand more men, and 
if I go down under the measure, I will go down like 
the ' Cumberland' with my colors flying." 

God crowned his noble decision with success. He 
did not go down like the " Cumberland " or any other 
riddled gunboat. Opposition hid itself before the on- 
ward march of his popularity. He was re-elected by 
the largest majority ever known in presidential elec- 
tions. His popular majority was 411,428, in a total 
vote of 4,015,902; and he had 212 of the 233 votes in 
the electoral college. On being publicly congratulated 
upon this emphatic endorsement, President Lincoln 
said : — 

" I am thankful to God for this approval of the peo- 
ple. But, while deeply grateful for this mark of their 
confidence in me, if I know my heart, my gratitude is 
free from any taint of personal triumph. I do not im- 
pugn the motives of any one opposed to me. It is no 
pleasure to me to triumph over any one ; but I give 
thanks to the Almighty for this evidence of the peo- 
ple's resolution to stand by free government, and the 
rights of humanity." 

The re-election of President Lincoln was equal to 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 423 

the addition of five hundred thousand more soldiers to 
the Union army. It destroyed the last hope of the 
Rebellion. It was staggering when the day of the 
election arrived ; and from that time its fall was rapidly 
accelerated. 

On the fourth day of March, 1865, his second inaugur- 
ation as President of the United States occurred. A 
great concourse of people witnessed the imposing cere- 
monies, and listened to his remarkable inaugural ad- 
dress. According to the national custom, Mr. Lincoln 
kissed the open Bible, after having taken the oath of 
office. Mr. Middleton, who passed the Bible to him, 
instantly marked the verses touched by the President's 
lips. They were the 26th and 27th verses of the 
Fifth chapter of Isaiah, and read as follows : — 

"And he will lift up an ensign to the nations, and will hiss 
unto them from the end of the earth ; and, behold, they shall 
come with speed swiftly ; none shall be weary nor stumble among 
them ; none shall slumber nor sleep ; neither shall the girdle of 
their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken." 

The speedy overthrow of the Rebellion furnished a 
remarkable interpretation of these words ; and they 
are choice words of prophecy to be forever associated 
with President Lincoln's memory. 

His inaugural address on that occasion has been de- 
clared to be the most remarkable State paper extant. 

It has often been classed with the " Farewell Ad- 
dress" of Washington ; as it proved, indeed, the fare- 
well address of Lincoln to the American people. And 
as Washington's life would be incomplete without the 
former, so Lincoln's life would lack an essential fact 



424 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



without the latter. The address was brief, direct, and 
affecting, as follows : — 

Fellow-Countrymen, — At this second appearing to take the 
oath of the presidential office, there is less occasion for an ex- 
tended address than there was at first. Then, a statement, some- 
what in detail, of a course to be pursued, seemed fitting and proper. 
Now, at the expiration of four years, during which public declara- 
tions have been constantly called forth on every point and phase 
of the great contest which still absorbs the attention and engrosses 
the energies of the nation, little that is new could be presented. 
The progress of our arms, upon which all else chiefly depends, is 
as well known to the public as to myself; and it is, I trust, reason- 
ably satisfactory and encouraging to all. With high hope for the 
future, no prediction in regard to it is ventured. 

On the occasion corresponding to this four years ago, all 
thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war. All 
dreaded it — all sought to avert it. While the inaugural address 
was being delivered from this place, devoted altogether to saving 
the Union without war, insurgent agents were in the city seeking 
to destroy it without war — seeking to dissolve the Union and 
divide effects by negotiation. Both parties deprecated war ; but 
one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive ; 
and the other would accept war rather than let it perish. And 
the war came. 

One-eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not 
distributed generally over the Union, but localized in the southern 
part of it. These slaves constituted a peculiar and powerful 
interest. All knew that this interest was, somehow, the cause of 
the war. To strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this interest was 
the object for which the insurgents would rend the Union, even 
by war ; while the government claimed no right to do more than 
to restrict the territorial enlargement of it. Neither party ex- 
pected for the war the magnitude or the duration which it has 
already attained. Neither anticipated that the cause of the con- 
flict might cease with, or even before, the conflict itself should 
cease. Each looked for an easier triumph, and a result less 
fundamental and astounding. Both read the same Bible and 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 425 

pray to the same God ; and each invokes his aid agninst the 
other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a 
just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of 
other men's faces ; but let us judge not, that we be not judged. 
The prayers of both could not be answered — that of neither has 
been answered fully. The Almighty has His own purposes. 
" Woe unto the world because of offences ! for it must needs be 
that offences come ; but woe to that man by whom the offence 
cometh." If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of 
those offences which, in the Providence of God, must needs come, 
but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now 
wills to remove, and that he gives to both North and South this 
terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offence came, 
shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attri- 
butes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him ? 
Fondly do we hope — fervently do we pray — that this mighty 
scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it 
continue until all the wealth piled by the bondman's two hundred 
and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop 
of blood drawn by the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the 
sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, 
" The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether." 

With malice toward none ; with charity for all ; with firmness 
in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish 
the work we are engaged in ; to bind up the nation's wounds ; to 
care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow 
and his orphan — to do all which may achieve and cherish a just 
and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all nations. 

Charles Sumner said of this address : " The Inaugu- 
ral Address which signalized his entry for a second 
time upon his great duties was briefer than any similar 
address in our history ; but it has already gone farther, 
and will live longer, than any other. It was a continu- 
ation of the Gettysburg speech, with the same sublimity 
and gentleness. Its concluding words were like an 
angelic benediction." 



426 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

The subject of Civil Service Reform, which provokes 
so much discussion at the present time, engaged the 
attention of Mr. Lincoln at the time he entered upon 
the second term of his presidential career. He re- 
marked to Senator Clark of New Hampshire : — 

" Can't you and others start a public sentiment in 
favor of making no changes in offices except for good 
and sufficient cause?" 

" It would be an excellent measure," answered the 
senator. " You would remove or appoint no one for 
party considerations alone ? " 

" Exactly. It seems as though the bare thought of 
going through again what I did the first year here, 
would crush me." 

" I am not surprised to hear that remark," continued 
Mr. Clark. " Nine-tenths of your callers are office- 
seekers, or persons without any important business." 

" Besides, it is all wrong to remove public servants 
who deserve to be retained, for the sake of promoting 
politicians who have done well for their party." Then, 
referring to applicants for office, he added, " It seems as 
if every visitor darted at me, and, with thumb and 
finger, carried off a portion of my vitality." 

The senator laughed over this figure of a " carcass," 
carried off by birds of prey ; and the President went 
• on : — 

" I have made up my mind to make very few changes 
in the offices in my gift for my second term. I think 
now that I will not remove a single man, except for 
delinquency. To remove a man is very easy, but when 
I go to fill his place, there are twenty applicants, and 
of these I must make nineteen enemies." 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 427 

Senator Clark endorsed these sentiments as belong- 
ing to true statesmanship, and hoped that the President 
would be able to reduce his theory to practice. The 
latter closed the interview with the following rather 
sharp remark : — 

" Sitting here, where all the avenues to public patron- 
age seem to come together in a knot, it does seem to 
me that our people are fast approaching the point where 
it can be said that seven-eighths of them are trying to 
find how to live at the expense of the other eighth." 

Three weeks after Mr. Lincoln entered upon his 
second term of office, he went to City Point, partly to 
recruit his wasted energies, and partly to be near the 
base of military operations now hastening to a crisis. 
The "boys in blue" greeted him with an enthusiasm 
that showed their strong love for the man. 

A grand review had been arranged for the twenty- 
fifth of March, in honor of the President ; but General 
Lee attacked and captured Fort Stedman, on that 
morning, requiring a hard-fought battle, instead of a 
review, to drive out his forces — a feat that was 
triumphantly accomplished within a few hours. Presi- 
dent Lincoln visited the field of carnage soon after the 
battle, and, on hearing regrets expressed that the grand 
review did not occur, he said, — 

"This victory is better than any review." 

Immediately a council of war was held at City Point, 
attended by the President and Generals Grant, Sher- 
man,,. Sheridan, Meade, and Ord; and it was followed 
by those three memorable days of battle, Friday, Satur- 
day, and Sunday, sealing the doom of Richmond. 

Mr. Lincoln remained at City Point, receiving dis- 



428 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

patches from the front and forwarding them to Wash- 
ington. His first dispatch to the Secretary of War 
on Saturday was, — 

" Hard fighting this morning, and our forces repulsed." 

A few hours later, he telegraphed, — 

" The ground lost has been retaken." 

On Sunday morning his dispatch was, — 

" The triumphant success of our armies, after two days of hard 
fighting, during which the forces on both sides displayed unsur- 
passed valor." 

In the afternoon he telegraphed, — 

" General Grant has taken twelve thousand prisoners and fifty 
pieces of artillery." 

On Monday morning he telegraphed, — 

" Richmond has fallen ! " 

Later, his dispatch to Secretary Stanton read, — 

" I am about to enter Richmond ! " 

The Secretary immediately telegraphed back, — 

" Do not peril your life in that way ! " 

The next morning he returned the following : — 

" I received your dispatch yesterday ; went to Richmond, and 
returned this morning." 

This was not reckless daring on his part, but his 
philosophical way of viewing the danger, as we shall 
learn more particularly in the next chapter. « 

On Monday, President Lincoln entered the fallen 
city without parade. Usually, conquerors have taken 
possession of captured cities and fallen thrones with 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 429 

the proudest display of exultation, bearing along with 
them the trophies of war. But true to himself, Mr. 
Lincoln found it more congenial to his heart to enter 
the subdued rebel capital without even fife or drum. 
Unheralded by brilliant cavalcade, he threaded his way 
as a common man through the streets to the head- 
quarters of Jefferson Davis, who had become a volun- 
tary fugitive. And though he took possession of the 
traitor-city without ostentation or military parade, 
history records his entrance as a triumphal march, 
and patriot fathers tell the story of it to their children 
in honor of Lincoln's greatness. 

President Lincoln remained in Richmond until 
Tuesday morning, occupying the house so uncere- 
moniously vacated by the arch-traitor of the Rebel- 
lion. The loyal people trembled for his safety when 
they heard he was there. Many pronounced his going 
to Richmond " a foolhardy act." All deprecated his 
unnecessary exposure of life, as they regarded it, and 
were greatly relieved when the telegraph informed 
them that he was back again in Washington. 

Speaker Colfax expostulated with him upon his 
seeming disregard of danger, to which the President 
replied : — 

" I should have been alarmed myself if any other 
person had been President and gone there ; but I did 
not feel in any danger whatever." 

Before reaching Washington, on his return, he 
read aloud twice from his copy of Shakespeare the 
words which Macbeth uttered about the murdered 
Duncan, calling the special attention of his friends to 
them : — 



430 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Duncan is in his grave ; 
After life's fitful fever, he sleeps well ; 
Treason has done his worst ; nor steel, nor poison, 
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing, 
Can touch him further." 

The friends who listened to his remarks upon this 
striking passage could but recall the singular circum- 
stances, after his assassination. 

The fall of Richmond was celebrated throughout the 
North and West by bonfires, illuminations, speeches, 
music, ringing of bells, and general rejoicing. Every- 
where Mr. Lincoln was remembered and eulogized for 
his wisdom, patriotism and achievements. 

Just one week from the time the news of the fall of 
Richmond was flashed over the land, the tidings of 
Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court-house followed, 
magnifying the general joy tenfold, if possible. The 
war was ended, and Constitutional Liberty maintained. 
Over the western portico of the Capitol at Washing- 
ton was inscribed, with a beautiful banner waving 
over it : — 

"This is the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in 

OUR EYES." 

Over the door of the State Department was the fol- 
lowing : — 

" The Union saved by faith in the Constitu- 
tion, faith in the People, and trust in God." 

The day of jubilee had come — " the greatest day," 
said one, "since the Resurrection." 

The welcome news of " Peace " spread over the land 
with the rapidity of light, and flashed under the ocean 
to foreign countries, where glad millions joined in fes- 



STILL IN THE WHITE HOUSE. 43 1 

tivities over the end of the conflict and the triumph 
of freedom. As when Cornwallis surrendered, and the 
War of Independence was over, the people became 
wild with joy ; so the news — Lee has surrendered 
— awaked almost frantic demonstrations of delight. 
All modes of expressing exultation were inadequate, 
and yet all were employed. Sextons rushed to the 
churches to ring the bells ; gunners added the peal of 
cannon ; acquaintances met in the streets and em- 
braced each other ; some wept, others laughed, all 
were jubilant. Never before were so many bells rung 
together, so many cannon fired, so many shouts of 
victory raised, so many bands of music waked, so 
many banners waved, and so many bonfires and illu- 
minations kindled, to celebrate the return of peace and 
the nation saved. 

The praise of Lincoln was on every lip, and has con- 
tinued to be from that day to the present time. The 
nation delights to honor his memory, and one of the re- 
cent acts of the National Government is a tribute to his 
memory by a generous increase of his widow's pension. 

Mr. Lincoln had accomplished the purpose of his 
administration — he had crushed the Rebellion 

AND SAVED THE UNION. 

Charles Sumner said of President Lincoln's adminis- 
tration : " The corner-stone of National Independence 
is already in its place, and on it is inscribed the name of 
George Washington. There is another stone which 
must have its place at the corner also. This is the 
Declaration of Independence, with all its promises ful- 
filled. On this stone we will gratefully inscribe the 
name of Abraham Lincoln. 



432 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Each was at the head of the Republic during a 
period of surpassing trial ; and each thought only of 
the public good, simply, purely, constantly, so that 
single-hearted devotion to country will always find a 
synonym in their names. Each was the national chief 
during a time of successful war. Each was the repre- 
sentative of his country at a great epoch of history. 

" The part which Lincoln was called upon to per- 
form resembled in character the part which was per- 
formed by Washington. The work left undone by 
Washington was continued by Lincoln. Kindred in 
service, kindred in patriotism, each was naturally sur- 
rounded at death by kindred homage." 




CHAPTER XXVIII. 

SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 

1ROM the time of Mr. Lincoln's nomination 
for the Presidency, as we have seen, fears 
of his assassination prevailed among his 
friends. The President himself had reason 
to believe that he was in danger of being shot, for he 
had a package of threatening letters, which he had ap- 
propriately labelled, " Assassination Letters," and laid 
away. His attention was often called to the subject 
by anxious friends. On being remonstrated with for 
unnecessarily exposing himself, he replied, without 
denying his danger: — 

" Soon after I was nominated at Chicago, I began 
to receive letters threatening my life. The first one 
or two made me a little uncomfortable, but I came at 
length to look for a regular instalment of this kind of 
correspondence in every week's mail, and up to In- 
auguration Day I was in constant receipt of such letters. 
It is no uncommon thing to receive them now ; but 
they have ceased to give me apprehension." 

Surprise was expressed that he could be indifferent 
to a peril that his friends considered imminent, and he 
answered : — 



434 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

"Oh, there is nothing like getting used to things!" 

A cavalry guard was once placed at the gates of 
the White House, but was removed at his request. 
"I worried until I got rid of it," he said to a friend. 

He once remarked to Colonel Halpine, "It will 
never do for a President to have guards with drawn 
sabres at his door, as if he fancied he were, or were 
trying to be, or were assuming to be, an emperor." 

Once he went to General Halleck's private quarters 
and protested against a detachment of cavalry, de- 
tailed, without his request, by General Wadsworth, to 
guard his carriage going to and from the Soldiers' 
Home. He remarked, facetiously, yet earnestly: — 

" Why, Mrs. Lincoln and I cannot hear ourselves 
talk for the clatter of their sabres and spurs ; and some 
of them appear to be new hands and very awkward, so 
that I am more afraid of being shot by the accidental 
discharge of a carbine or revolver, than of any attempt 
upon my life by a roving squad of Stewart's cavalry." 

Very much in the same vein he replied to Colonel 
Halpine, who was trying to show him his exposure 
even in the White House, saying: — 

" There are two dangers, the danger of deliberate 
political assassination, and the mere brute violence of 
insanity." 

The President replied, as related by Mr. Carpenter: 

" Now as to political assassination, do you think 
the Richmond people would like to have Hannibal 
Hamlin here any better than myself? In that one 
alternative, I have an insurance on my life worth half 
the prairie land of Illinois. And beside," — this more 
gravely, — " if there were such a plot, and they wanted 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 435 

to get at me, no vigilance could keep them out. We 
are so mixed up in our affairs, that — no matter what 
the system established — a conspiracy to assassinate, 
if such there were, could easily obtain a pass to see 
me for any one or more of its instruments. 

"To betray fear of this, by placing guards or so 
forth, would only be to put the idea into their heads, 
and perhaps, lead to the very result it was intended to 
prevent. As to the crazy folks, Major, why I must 
only take my chances, — the most crazy people at 
present, I fear, being some of my own too zealous ad- 
herents. That there may be such dangers as you and 
many others have suggested to me, is quite possible ; 
but I guess it would n't improve things any to publish 
that we were afraid of them in advance." 

At one time, there was undoubted proof of a rebel 
plot to abduct Mr. Lincoln, or kill him in the attempt, 
as there was at one time to capture or kill George 
Washington ; and when the facts were laid before him, 
he replied : — 

"Well, even if true, I do not see what the rebels 
would gain by either killing or getting possession of 
me. I am but a single individual, and it would not 
help their cause, or make the least difference in the 
progress of the war." 

On the morning of April 14, 1865, the President's 
son, Capt. Robert T. Lincoln, returned from the army, 
and spent an hour in giving his father a detailed ac- 
count of Lee's surrender. At the same time, also, he 
received a letter from General Owen Allen, of New 
York, entreating him not to expose his life again, as 
he'did by going to Richmond, to which he replied : — 



43^ PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" I intend to adopt the advice of my friends, and use 
due precaution." 

The 14th of April was a holiday for the loyal people ; 
for it was the anniversary of the evacuation of Fort 
Sumter, just four years before ; and the day had been 
set apart for the restoration of the old flag to its former 
place over the fort. The ceremony, with speeches, 
music, cannon, and other demonstrations of joy, at 
Charleston, S. C, was witnessed by a great concourse 
of loyal men from every part of the land. 

A special programme for the evening of that day was 
announced at Ford's Theatre, and President Lincoln, 
General Grant, and other public men in the city were 
invited; and it was announced in the public journals 
that these dignitaries would be present. 

Mr. Ashmun and Mr. Colfax were with him when his 
carriage was driven to the gate. The latter gentleman 
was to leave in the mOrning for California, Mr. Ash- 
mun had important business to lay before the Presi- 
dent ; and, before entering his carriage, the latter wrote 
upon a card : — 

" Allow Mr. Ashmun and friend to come in at nine A. m. to- 
morrow. « A T „ 

"A. Lincoln." 

These were the last words he wrote. Passing out 
to his carriage, he said to Mr. Colfax : — 

" Do not forget to tell the people of the mining 
regions what I told you this morning about the de- 
velopment when peace comes." 

After being seated in his carriage, and the horses 
started, he added, " I will telegraph you, Colfax, at 
San Francisco." 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 437 

It was twenty minutes to nine o'clock when he 
entered the theatre, accompanied by Mrs. Lincoln, 
Miss Harris and Major Rathbone. General Grant had 
been called to Philadelphia. 

The vast audience rose to their feet, and made such 
a demonstration in honor of their chief, as was possible 
only by those who appreciated the end of the war and 
the reign of peace. 

An hour afterwards, the crack of a pistol startled the 
audience, although, at first, many thought it was a part 
of the entertainment. A shriek from Mrs. Lincoln, 
and the leap of the assassin from the President's private 
box to the stage, however, assured them that a real 
tragedy had been enacted. The murderer exclaimed, 
as he leaped to the stage : — 

"Sic semper tyrannis!" [Thus let it ever be with 
tyrants.] Then brandishing a gleaming dagger he 
added, "The South is avenged," and escaped. 

For a moment the audience was paralyzed, scarcely 
realizing the tragic situation. 

" John Wilkes Booth ! " shouted a man in the 
audience. 

"Shoot him!" "Shoot him!" "Hang him!" 
screamed a hundred men, awaking to the fact that it 
was the shot of an assassin which startled them. 

Women screamed and fainted ; men gesticulated 
and threatened ; everybody was filled with consterna- 
tion and dismay ; hundreds wept in fright and horror. 
The scene beggared description. From the highest 
peak of joy, the audience was plunged in a moment 
down to unutterable sorrow. To add to the terrible 
fear and apprehension the tidings were brought, as the 



43 8 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

excited assembly were issuing from the building, that 
Secretary Seward and Vice-President Johnson were 
assassinated, also. At once, hundreds caught up the 
idea, that the oft-repeated rebel threats to assassinate 
the members of the Cabinet and take forcible possession 
of the Government, were being executed. All sorts of 
rumors of violence and blood spread through the city, 
creating the apprehensions that republican institu- 
tions were dissolving into anarchy, and that horrid 
butchery would destroy what treason had failed to 
overthrow. 

The reports proved to be true, as far as Secretary 
Seward was concerned. One of the conspirators, 
Lewis Payne, an infamous character, had entered the 
secretary's chamber and stabbed him three times in 
bed. Mr. Seward was helpless at the time, from the 
effects of a serious injury ; and, but for the courage and 
great strength of his attendant, the assassin would 
have killed him on the spot. Mr. Seward's son was 
present, and was badly wounded, with four others, by 
the villain, before he escaped from the house. 

The unconscious form of the President was borne 
across the street to the house of Mr. Peterson, where 
the best medical and surgical talent of the city came 
to his relief. It was soon manifest that the good and 
great man was beyond the skill of physicians. He was 
shot through the back of the head, the ball entering 
on the left side behind the ear, passing through the 
brain, and lodging just behind the right eye. 

By midnight all the members of the Cabinet stood 
around the couch of the dying President, together with 
Mrs. Dixon, for whom Mrs. Lincoln had sent, Miss 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 439 

Harris, Major Rathbone, Captain Robert Lincoln, and 
his almost distracted mother, with other friends. At 
the announcement of Surgeon-General Barnes, that 
there was "not a ray of hope," Secretary Stanton burst 
into tears, saying, — 

" Oh, no ! General, no, no ! " 

Senator Sumner stood holding one of the President's 
hands, sobbing as if parting with his father. Mrs. 
Lincoln walked to and fro from room to room, wringing 
her hands in despair, exclaiming, — 

" How can it be so ? Why did he not shoot me 
instead of my husband ? " 

Again and again she would leave the room, but soon 
return, wringing her hands in agony, reiterating, — 

" Why is it so ? I must go with him ! " 

Captain Robert Lincoln bore himself with great 
firmness, comforting his mother in the most affection- 
ate manner, and entreating her to look to God for 
support. Occasionally, unable to control his feelings, 
he retired to the hall, and gave vent to his deep sorrow 
for a moment, and then returned with renewed strength, 
to assuage the grief of his mother. 

Such a night of woe and anguish was never known 
before in Washington. The weary hours dragged 
heavily because of their weight of sorrow. The mur- 
dered one lay unconscious of his sufferings and the 
grief of friends around his bed, through all the dis- 
mal night. Before eight o'clock in the morning, 
Secretary Stanton sent the following telegram over 
the land : — 

"Abraham Lincoln died this morning at twenty-two 
minutes after seven o'clock." 



44° PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

But we must return to the assassin. He was 
known to some persons who saw him and heard 
his voice, after the fatal shot — John Wilkes Booth 
— a worthless, dissipated fellow, in full sympathy with 
the rebel cause. Immediate efforts were put forth 
by the authorities to capture him and his fellow-con- 
spirators. It was soon ascertained that Booth had 
been busy laying his plans during the previous day, 
and that several accomplices were engaged with him. 
There was unmistakable evidence that other members 
of the Cabinet were singled out for assassination, and 
that General Grant would have been a victim had he 
remained in the city. A letter was found in Booth's 
trunk which showed that the assassination was planned 
for March 4 — the day of Mr. Lincoln's inaugura- 
tion, and that it failed because the accomplices refused 
to proceed " until Richmond could be heard from." 

Colonel Baker, with his picked men, pursued Booth 
to the farm-house of one Garrett, in Lower Maryland, 
in whose barn he was found, with Herold, one of his 
accomplices. Herold gave himself up, but Booth re- 
fused to surrender, whereupon the barn was set on 
fire, and he was shot by Boston Corbett, in his at- 
tempt to escape. Lewis Payne, who made the attempt 
upon the life of Secretary Seward, George A. Atzerodt, 
to whom was assigned the murder of Vice-President 
Johnson, Michael O'Laughlin, Edward Spangler, who 
aided Booth at the theatre, Samuel Arnold, Mary E. 
Surratt, and Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, were the conspirators 
arrested and tried by a military commission. Herold, 
Atzerodt, Payne, and Mrs. Surratt were sentenced to be 
hanged, and were executed on the seventh day of July. 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 44 1 

We stop here to record a fact about the assassin 
that has never been published. A retired sea-captain 
of New Bedford, Mass., remarked, when he read that 
J. Wilkes Booth had murdered President Lincoln : 

"I am not at all surprised; just what I should 
expect ! " 

"Why do you say that? " inquired a listener. 

"I will tell you," replied the captain; "when J. 
Wilkes Booth was about ten years old, I was running 
a vessel from Liverpool to New Orleans, and I brought 
J. Wilkes, with his father and family, from the former 
to the latter place. That boy, John Wilkes, was the 
most ungovernable and impudent fellow of his age I 
ever met with. Like most boys who go to ruin, he 
was disrespectful and saucy to his mother. She could 
do nothing with him. One day she was correcting 
him for his usual impudence to her, when Mr. Booth, 
her husband, made his appearance. Observing what 
his wife was about, he cried out at the top of his voice, 
'What ! treating that boy so? He never will make a 
man if you treat him so.' " The captain added : " I 
am not surprised that such a boy should become an 
assassin." 

Before his assassination, President Lincoln was 
often likened to William of Orange, whose subjects 
called him " Father William," as we were wont to call 
our beloved President " Father Abraham." But when 
treason had done its worst, and our Lincoln was 
assassinated, as William of Orange was assassinated, 
the comparison with that " purest and best-loved ruler 
of his times" became a remarkable and affecting 
coincidence. 



442 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

By midnight, April 14, the tidings of President Lin- 
coln's assassination began to flash over the wires. 
Long before sunrise the large cities and towns of the 
country, having night telegraphic connection with 
Washington, were startled by the terrible news. Gov- 
ernors, mayors and other officials, were called from 
their beds to receive the dreadful announcement. By 
the time men and women went to the business of the 
morning the sad news met them everywhere ; and 
speedily followed Mr. Stanton's telegram announcing 
the President's death. 

Never was there such sorrow in the Republic 
before. The people had been rejoicing over the close 
of the war for several days, and the praise of President 
Lincoln, for his wise and successful administration, 
was on every lip. The heights of national joy had 
been reached ; and now to plunge therefrom into the 
lowest depths of sorrow, was a fearful change. The 
popular heart sunk under the burden of grief. Strong 
men wept as they went about the streets. Great men 
buried their faces in their hands and cried as if a mem- 
ber of their own families had been stricken down. 
The marts of trade were turned to houses of mourning. 
The transaction of business ceased. Neither rich nor 
poor had any heart to traffic or labor. Neighbor ac- 
costed neighbor — " terrible ! terrible ! " and burst into 
tears. The sorrow was universal. Both old and 
young felt its oppressive weight. 

A few weary, sad hours passed, and people began to 
gather in halls and churches to carry their case to the 
Lord. There was no help in man for such a trial. 
When stalwart men bear about so great a sorrow, that 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 443 

they meet only to speak in tears, the only relief is 
found at the throne of grace. And so men left their 
business and women their homes to gather round a 
common altar ; rich and poor, learned and unlearned, 
meeting together before the Most High. There were 
hundreds and thousands of such assemblies on the 
afternoon of that sorrowful Saturday, April 15, 1865. 
Words of comfort, prayers, and tears, brought some 
relief to the mourning people. 

The next day was the holy Sabbath ; and such a 
Sabbath ! Already the symbols of grief had appeared 
on churches and public buildings, stores and dwelling 
houses. As if by a general impulse, the people every- 
where began on Saturday to drape their homes and 
places of business with the habiliments of sorrow. 
The markets were exhausted of every fabric that could 
be used to express the sadness of human hearts. 
Houses of worship were crowded on Sunday with 
honest mourners. In pulpits heavily draped with 
crape, preachers discoursed upon the great sorrow, 
and led their sorrowful congregations to the Lord. 
The day will never be forgotten by the multitude who 
mingled their common grief. 

In some localities the grief expressed itself in the 
form of vengeance. It assumed that form early on 
Saturday morning in the city of New York. Armed 
men gathered in the streets threatening speedy death 
to disloyal citizens. Their numbers rapidly increased, 
until fifty thousand assembled in Wall street Exchange, 
bearing aloft a portable gallows, and swearing sum- 
mary vengeance upon the first rebel sympathizer who 
dared to speak. One thoughtless fellow remarked 



444 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

that " Lincoln ought to have been shot long ago " ; 
and he was struck dead instantly. The grieved and 
vengeful crowd seethed towards the office of the 
World, a disloyal paper, with mutterings of violence 
on their lips. It seemed scarcely possible to prevent 
violent demonstration. A bloody scene appeared to be 
imminent. At that critical moment a portly man, of 
commanding physique and voice, appeared upon the 
balcony of the City Hall, from Which telegrams were 
read to the people, and raising his right hand to in- 
voke silence, he exclaimed, in clear and sonorous 
tones : — 

" Fellow-citizens : Clouds and darkness are round 
about Him ! His pavilion is dark waters and thick 
clouds of the skies ! Justice and judgment are the 
habitation of His throne ! Mercy and truth shall go 
before his face ! Fellow-citizens : God reigns, and the 
government at Washington still lives ! " 

The effect of this serious address was magical. The 
raging populace subsided into repose. A hushed 
silence pervaded the vast assembly, when the voice of 
the speaker ceased, as if they had listened to a mes- 
senger from the skies. The change was marvellous. 
The speaker was General James A. Garfield, who 
became President sixteen years afterwards, and, was 
shot by an assassin four months later ! How strange 
that the inhabitants of that metropolis, who listened 
to the gifted statesman so gladly, April 14th, 1865, 
should be shocked by the news of his assassination on 
July 2d, 1 88 1 ! 

No class of citizens were more sincere mourners for 
the illustrious dead than the colored race. They went 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 445 

about the streets of Washington wringing their hands 
and weeping as Rachel did for her children. They 
gathered in groups on the streets and bewailed their 
loss in pitiful lamentations. Many of them appeared 
to be inconsolable. More sincere and profound sor- 
row never bowed human hearts. 

A correspondent of the New York Tribune, writing 
from Charleston, S. C, said : — 

" I never saw such sad faces or heard such heavy 
heart-beatings as here in Charleston the day the 
dreadful news came ! The colored people — the na- 
tive loyalists — were like children bereaved of an old 
and loved parent. I saw one old woman going up the 
street wringing her hands and saying aloud as she 
walked, looking straight before her, so absorbed in her 
grief that she noticed no one : ' O Lord ! O Lord ! O 
Lord ! Massa Sam's dead ! Massa Sam's dead ! ' 

" ' Who's dead, Aunty ? ' I asked her. 

" ' Massa Sam,' she said, not looking at me, renew- 
ing her lamentations. 

" « O Lord ! O Lord ! O Lord ! Massa Sam's dead ! ' 

" ' Who is Massa Sam ? ' I asked again. 

" ' Uncle Sam,' she said. 

" ' O Lord ! Lord ! Lord ! " she continued. 

" I was not quite sure that she meant the President, 
and I spoke again : — 

"'Who's Massa Sam, Aunty?' 

" ' Mr. Lincum ! ' she said, and resumed wringing her 
hands and moaning in utter hopelessness of sorrow. 
The poor creature was too ignorant to comprehend any 
difference between the very unreal Uncle Sam and the 
actual President ; but her heart told her that he whom 



446 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

Heaven had sent in answer to her prayers was lying in 
a bloody grave, and she and her race were left — father- 
less." 

A friend of the writer was in a city of North Carolina 
when the news of the assassination reached the colored 
people there. In their profound grief they followed 
their leader to their humble place of worship, filling it 
to overflowing. Our friend went thither, and found 
the whole congregation upon their knees, giving vent 
to their feelings in convulsive sobs and piteous moans. 
Even their patriarchal leader was too full for utterance ; 
and, on his knees, he was crying with his afflicted peo- 
ple. At length, an old woman, bowed with age and 
trembling with emotion, rose to express her grief in 
words. Clasping her dusky hands together, and lifting 
her streaming eyes heavenward, she exclaimed: — 

" Bress de Lord ! bress de Lord ! Dey hab killed 
Massa Linkum, but dey can't kill God ! " 

" Amen ! " " Amen ! " " Amen ! " was the response 
from every part of the house, showing, not only the 
greatness of their bereavement, but, also, their glad- 
ness that God was left. From that moment their 
tongues were loosed, and they found relief in the in- 
spiring thought, "they can't kill God." 

The Atlantic Cable flashed the terrible news across 
the sea, "President Lincoln Assassinated," start- 
ling foreign governments, and eliciting expressions of 
profound sympathy. 

Queen Victoria instructed Earl Russell to convey 
her unfeigned sorrow to the government of the United 
States, and, at the same time, with her own hand, 
she addressed a letter of touching condolence to Mrs. 
Lincoln. 



SHOT OF THE ASSASSIN. 447 

The London "Spectator" declared that all England 
wept for " the noblest President whom America has 
had since the time of Washington ; certainly the best, 
if not the ablest, man ruling over any country in the 
civilized world." 

The Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon, the Em- 
peror of France, addressed a letter of true sympathy to 
Mrs. Lincoln ; and the French government seconded 
the address of the Emperor to the United States, ex- 
pressing the deepest sorrow over our national bereave- 
ment. 

The governments of Russia, Italy, Prussia, Belgium, 
Turkey, Austria and Switzerland, were equally demon- 
strative in their expressions of grief and condolence. 

Hon. George Bancroft, the historian, said, " The 
echoes of his funeral knell vibrate through the world, 
and the friends of freedom of every tongue and in every 
clime are the mourners." 

Speaker Colfax said, — 

" Of this noble-hearted man, so full of genial impulses, so self- 
forgetful, so utterly unselfish, so pure and gentle and good, who 
lived for us and at last died for us, I feel how inadequate I am to 
portray his manifold excellence — his intellectual worth — his 
generous character — his fervid patriotism. Pope celebrated the 
memory of Robert Harley, the Lord of Oxford, a privy counsellor 
of Queen Anne, who himself narrowly escaped assassination, in 
lines that seem prophetic of Mr. Lincoln's virtues : — 

1 A soul supreme in each hard instance tried ; 
Above all pain, all anger, and all pride, 
The rage of power, the blast of public breath, 
The lust of lucre, and the dread of death.' 



448 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

" Murdered, cofifined, buried, he will live with those few im- 
mortal names who were not born to die ; live as the Father of the 
Faithful in the time that tried men's souls ; live in the grateful 
hearts of the dark-browed race he lifted from under the heel of the 
oppressor to the dignity of freedom and manhood ; live in every 
bereaved circle which has given father, husband, son, or friend to 
die, as he did, for his country ; live with the glorious company of 
martyrs to liberty, justice, and humanity, that trio of Heaven-born 
principles ; live in the love of all beneath the circuit of the sun, 
who loathe tyranny, slavery, and wrong. And, leaving behind him 
a record that shows how honesty and principle lifted him, self- 
made as he was, from the humblest ranks of the people to the 
noblest station on the globe, and a name that shall brighten under 
the eye of posterity as the ages roll by — 

' From the top of Fame's ladder he stepped to the sky.' " 



o 


m 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 

IMMEDIATE preparations were made for 
the obsequies. The dead body of the Presi- 
dent was removed to the White House, 
where it was embalmed and placed in a 
costly casket resting upon an elaborate catafalque. 

On Monday, a meeting of Congressmen, with other 
notable persons in Washington, was held in the 
Capitol, when Charles Sumner of Massachusetts 
was appointed Chairman of a Committee to arrange 
for the funeral ceremonies. At four o'clock in the 
afternoon this Committee reported Wednesday for 
the time of the funeral, and the names of six Sen- 
ators and six Representatives for pall-bearers, and 
one gentleman from each State and Territory as a 
National Committee to attend the remains to Spring- 
field, Illinois. 

On Tuesday morning the White House was thrown 
open to the tens of thousands anxious to behold once 
more the face of their beloved ruler. All day, until 
far into the evening, a steady stream of visitors, of all 
ages and classes, passed into the presence of the dead. 
Thousands were unable to gain admittance to the Ex- 



45 O PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

ecutive Mansion during the day, on account of the 
multitude, and they turned away in disappointment. 

When the hour of the funeral arrived on Wednesday, 
the city, with all its public buildings, was elaborately 
draped in black. The symbols of mourning were of 
the most varied and expensive character. Decorative 
art was taxed to its utmost to express the sentiment 
of grief that pervaded the city. A public man, looking 
at the sable drapery, remarked : — 

" As it should be. The nation would have it so. It 
tells the real sorrow of the people." 

The funeral services were conducted in the East 
Room, where the family and relatives of the President, 
with many distinguished men, were seated. Mrs. 
Lincoln was too much prostrated to attend the funeral 
service. Many governors, senators, judges, repre- 
sentatives, and other men of note, were present from 
different parts of the Union. Governors Fenton of 
New York, Andrew of Massachusetts, Brough of Ohio, 
Parker of New Jersey, Oglesby of Illinois, and Buck- 
ingham of Connecticut, were there. The ceremonies 
were simple and touching, very appropriate for the 
truly Republican statesman for whom the nation 
mourned. Rev. Dr. Gurley paid a just and eloquent 
tribute to the dead. He said : — 

" Probably no man since the days of Washington was ever so 
deeply and firmly embedded and enshrined in the hearts of the 
people as Abraham Lincoln. Nor was it a mistaken confidence 
and love. He deserved it ; deserved it well ; deserved it all. He 
merited it by his character, by his acts, and by the tenor and 
tone and spirit of his life. . . He rose to the dignity and 
momentousness of the occasion ; saw his duty as the magistrate 
of a great and imperilled people, and he determined to do his 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 45 I 

duty and his whole duty, seeking the guidance and leaning upon 
the arm of Him of whom it is written — ' He giveth power to the 
faint, and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 
. . . Never shall I forget the emphasis and the deep emotion 
with which he said, in this very room, to a company of clergymen 
and others, who called to pay him their respects in the darkest 
days of our civil conflict : ' Gentlemen, my hope of success in 
the great and terrible struggle rests on that immovable foundation, 
the justice and goodness of God. And when events are very 
threatening, and prospects very dark, I still hope that, in some 
way which man cannot see, all will be well in the end, because 
our cause is just, and God is on our side.' Such was his sublime 
and holy faith ; and it was an anchor to his soul both sure and 
steadfast. It made him firm and strong It emboldened him 
in the pathway of duty, however rugged and perilous it might be. 
It made him valiant for the right, for the cause of God and hu- 
manity, and it held him steady and unswerving to a policy of 
administration which he thought, and which all now think, both 
God and man required him to adopt." 

At the close of the services in the presidential man- 
sion, the body was conveyed to the Capitol, followed by 
a larger and more imposing procession than had ever 
been seen in Washington. The grand avenue leading 
from the White House to the Capitol was one dense 
mass of human beings, and all the neighboring streets 
of the city were thronged with tearful spectators. As 
the hearse, which was drawn by eight gray horses, 
heavily draped in black, approached the Capitol grounds, 
several bands joined in a mournful requiem, answered 
by minute guns from the fortifications. The casket 
was deposited in the rotunda, resting upon a grand 
catafalque, when Dr. Gurley conducted further cere- 
monies suited to the place and the occasion. Then 
the doors were thrown open, that the remains might be 



452 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

viewed by the tens of thousands who had failed to gain 
access to the Executive Mansion. From that time, all 
through the night, and far into the next day, a tide of 
people flowed in and out of the rotunda, to view the 
face of the President whom they had honored and 
loved. Of the pageant of that day, Dr. Holland says : 
" In many of its aspects, it was never paralleled upon 
this continent. Nothing like it — nothing approaching 
it — had ever occurred in this country, if, indeed, in the 
world." 

The same day was set apart, throughout the land, for 
funeral ceremonies, in honor of the deceased President. 
In hundreds and thousands of towns and cities, churches 
and public halls were thrown open, and the clergy and 
other professional gentlemen as well as laymen, ad- 
dressed the assembled multitudes, and led them to the 
throne of grace. 

The funeral train left Washington on the morning 
of April 21. Along with the casket of the President, 
was borne that of Willie — father and son united in 
death in the journey homeward, as they were united in 
life, four years before, on their journey thitherward. 
The train was elaborately draped, from the locomotive 
to the last car. 

At Baltimore, where conspirators sought the Presi- 
dent's life, four years before, on his journey to Wash- 
ington, thus obliging him to pass through the city by 
night, a vast concourse of people assembled to pay 
their tribute of respect to the dead. The city was 
almost as profusely draped as Washington itself ; and 
•when the casket was opened to the public, for a brief 
time, as honest tears were shed by the multitude 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 453 

about his remains as were wept in any other part of 
the land. 

The inhabitants of every village through which the 
funeral train passed, gathered at the depots, and, with 
uncovered heads, watched it as it swept by, while the 
tolling of bells, and sometimes the solemn dirge by a 
band, together with sable draperies on buildings and 
flags, added pathos to their grief. 

At York, six ladies entered the funeral car, bearing 
an immense floral tribute, which they laid upon the 
coffin so tenderly, and with so much emotion, that all 
witnesses were moved to tears. 

The funeral cortege reached Philadelphia on Saturday 
evening, and the remains were conveyed to Independ- 
ence Hall, followed by a procession of one hundred 
thousand people, while from three to four hundred 
thousand more were spectators. In the solemn shadows 
of night, moving to the measure of funereal music, the 
departed President was laid in the historic hall, which 
was one mass of flags, drapery, and flowers. Few failed 
to recall the prophetic words of the dead man, uttered 
within that hall four years before, when he was on his way 
to Washington to assume the duties of President : — 

" All the political sentiments I entertain have been drawn, so 
far as I have been able to draw them, from the sentiments which 
originated, and were given to the world from this hall. I have 
never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the senti- 
ments embodied in the Declaration of Independence." . . . 
" Now, my friends, can this, country be saved on this basis ? If it 
can, I shall consider myself one of the happiest men in the world 
if I can help to save it. If it cannot be saved upon that principle, 
it will be truly awful. But if this country cannot be saved without 
giving up that principle, I was about to say / would rather be 
assassinated on the spot." 



454 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

After the addition of a few more words, he added : 

" I have said nothing but what I am willing to live by 
and, if it be the pleasure of Almighty God, to die by." 

How wonderful his words in view of the appalling 
fact, that the enemies of the Declaration of Independ- 
ence finally took his life ! 

From Saturday night until Monday morning, the 
face of the murdered President was viewed by three 
hundred thousand people — an eager, orderly, mourning 
procession, moving in and out of Independence Hall, 
night and day, to pay their sincere tribute of respect to 
the dead. 

In the city of New York more than one hundred 
thousand people were in the procession, twenty thou- 
sand of whom were soldiers. One hundred bands of 
music played during the march. Nearly a millon 
people witnessed the pageant. Public services were 
held in Union Square, where Hon. George Bancroft 
delivered the eulogy, and Dr. J. P. Thompson read the 
President's last inaugural address. The following beau- 
tiful ode by the poet Bryant was read by Dr. Osgood : — 

W Oh, slow to smite and swift to spare, 

Gentle, and merciful, and just ! 

Who in the fear of God didst bear 

The sword of power — a nation's trust. 

In sorrow by thy bier we stand, 

Amid the awe that hushes all, 
And speak the anguish of a land 

That shook with horror at thy fall. 

Thy task is done — the bond are free ; 

We bear thee to an honored grave, 
Whose noblest monument shall be 

The broken fetters of the slave. 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 455 

Pure was thy life ; its bloody close 

Hath placed thee with the sons of light, 

Among the noble host of those 

Who perished in the cause of right." 

Of the ceremonies in New York, Morris said : " The 
funeral ceremonies of the first Napoleon, in the streets 
of Paris, when his remains were transferred from St. 
Helena to the Invalides by Louis Philippe, were re- 
garded as the greatest pageant the world had ever 
known, but the pageant in New York far exceeded it." 

At Albany the scene was no less imposing. The 
city was shrouded with crape, and beautiful sentiments 
appeared here and there : — 

'• The great heart of the nation throbs heavily at the portals of 
the grave." 

" All joy is darkened ; the mirth of the land is gone." 

" And the mourners go about the streets." 

" And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all 
the people." 

" The Martyr to Liberty." 

" Though dead, he yet speaketh." 

" Washington, the Father of his country ; Lincoln, the Saviour 
of his country." 

At Dunkirk, upon a tastefully draped platform was 
" a group of thirty-six young ladies, representing the 
States of the Union. They were dressed in white, 
each with a broad black scarf resting on the shoulder, 
and holding in her hand a national flag." 

At Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, one hundred 
and eighty persons a minute saw the remains, " two 
rows of spectators were constantly passing, one on 
each side of the coffin." Flowers wrought into every 
conceivable device, to express affection and respect for 



456 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

the dead, literally covered the coffin and platform — 
harps, wreaths, bouquets, crosses, anchors, and 
crowns. 

At Piqua ten thousand people assembled at mid- 
night, with uncovered heads, as distinctly seen under 
the blaze of torches and bonfires as under the light of 
mid-day, and thirty-six ladies in white, with black 
sashes, upon a draped platform, sang a plaintive tune 
amidst a hushed silence that was oppressive. As they 
closed, a band followed with a touching dirge. The 
effect of these ceremonies at midnight baffles descrip- 
tion. 

The body of the President lay in state at Indianapolis 
over the Sabbath of April 30, and was viewed by over 
one hundred thousand people, among whom were five 
thousand Sabbath-school scholars who came in a body 
with flowers to scatter upon the bier. 

At Chicago, the preparations for funeral ceremonies 
were too elaborate to be described. Thirty-six young 
ladies in white, with black sashes, bareheaded and with 
a black velvet wreath over the brows, a star in front, 
their arms full of flowers — immortelles and garlands — 
met the procession before it reached the court-house, 
and laid their floral tributes upon the funeral car. As 
the coffin was deposited in the spacious hall, a hundred 
singers, overhead and invisible, sang a funeral dirge 
with melting effect. Speaker Colfax delivered an 
eloquent eulogy. Some of the mottoes displayed were : 

" The altar of Freedom has borne no nobler sacrifice." 
" Illinois clasps to her bosom her slain, but glorified son." 
"He was sustained by our prayers, and returned embalmed by 
our tears." 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 457 

During the two days the remains reposed in Chicago, 
five hundred thousand mourners paid their tributes of 
respect to their lamented fellow-citizen and neighbor. 

But at his home, in Springfield, among his former 
intimate friends and townsmen, the most touchine: 
scenes occurred. Many sobbed aloud as they looked 
upon his familiar face in death. Old men and women, 
young men and maidens, mourned as for a brother and 
father. From the country around, for fifty miles and 
more, people came wearing badges of mourning — so 
many thousands that the town could scarcely contain 
them. And when the body was conveyed to the Oak 
Ridge Cemetery, where Bishop Simpson delivered a 
funeral oration, acres of ground were one vast " sea of 
upturned faces." In just two weeks from the time the 
funeral cortege left Washington, upon its march of six- 
teen hundred miles, the remains were deposited in the 
grave, over which a grateful country has reared a costly 
monument. 

Conspicuous among the mottoes displayed in the 
town, were these two : — 

" Sooner than surrender this principle, I would be assassinated 
on the spot." 

" Washington, the Father of his country ; Lincoln, the Sav- 
iour." 

The closing paragraph of Bishop Simpson's eloquent 
eulogy shall close our story of him who worked his way 
from his pioneer home to the White House: — 

"Chieftain! farewell! The nation mourns thee. Mothers 
shall teach thy name to their lisping children. The youth of our 
land shall emulate thy virtues. Statesmen shall study thy record 
and learn lessons of wisdom. Mute though thy lips be, yet they 



45§ PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

still speak. Hushed is thy voice, but its echoes of liberty are 
ringing through the world, and the sons of bondage listen with 
joy. Prisoned thou art in death, and yet thou art marching 
abroad, and chains and manacles are bursting at thy touch. Thou 
didst fall not for thyself. The assassin had no hate for thee. Our 
hearts were aimed at, our national life was sought. We crown 
thee as our martyr — and humanity enthrones thee as her triumph- 
ant son. Hero, martyr, friend, farewell ! " 




CHAPTER XXX. 

ORATION BY HON. GEORGE BANCROFT. 

flUR grief and horror at the crime which has 
clothed the continent in mourning, find no 
adequate expression in words, and no relief 
in tears. The President of the United 
States of America has fallen by the hands of an 
assassin. Neither the office by which he was invested 
by the approved choice of a mighty people, nor the 
most simple-hearted kindliness of nature, could save 
him from the fiendish passions of relentless fanaticism. 
The wailings of the millions attend his remains as 
they are borne in solemn procession over our great 
rivers, along the seaside, beyond the mountains, across 
the prairie, to their resting-place in the valley of the 
Mississippi. His funeral knell vibrates through the 
world, and the friends of freedom of every tongue and 
in every clime are his mourners. 

Too few days have passed away since Abraham Lin- 
coln stood in the flush of vigorous manhood, to permit 
any attempt at an analysis of his character, or an ex- 
position of his career. We find it hard to believe that 
his large eyes, which in their softness and beauty 
expressed nothing but benevolence and gentleness, are 



460 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



closed in death ; we almost look for the pleasant smile 
that brought out more vividly the earnest cast of his 
features, which were serious even to sadness. A few 
years ago he was a village attorney, engaged in the 
support of a rising family, unknown to fame, scarcely 
named beyond his neighborhood ; his administration 
made him the most conspicuous man in his country, 
and drew on him first the astonished gaze, and then 
the respect and admiration of the world. 

Those who come after us will decide how much of 
the wonderful results of his public career is due to his 
own good common sense, his shrewd sagacity, readiness 
of wit, quick interpretation of the public mind, his rare 
combination of fixedness and pliancy, his steady ten- 
dency of purpose ; how much to the American people, 
who, as he walked with them side by side, inspired him 
with their own wisdom and energy ; and how much to 
the overruling laws of the moral world, by which the 
selfishness of evil is made to defeat itself. But after 
every allowance, it will remain that members of the 
government which preceded his administration opened 
the gates to treason, and he closed them ; that when 
he went to Washington the ground on which he trod 
shook under his feet, and he left the republic on a 
solid foundation ; that traitors had seized public forts 
and arsenals, and he recovered them for the United 
States, to whom they belonged ; that the capital, 
which he found the abode of slaves, is now the home 
only of the free ; that the boundless public domain 
which was grasped at, and, in a great measure, held for 
the diffusion of slavery, is now irrevocably devoted to 
freedom ; that men then talked a jargon of a balance 



ORATION BY GEORGE BANCROFT. 46 1 

of power in a republic between slave States and free 
States, and now the foolish words are blown away for- 
ever by the breath of Maryland, Missouri, and Ten- 
nessee ; that a terrible cloud of political heresy rose 
from the abyss, threatening to hide the light of the 
sun, and under its darkness a rebellion was growing 
into indefinable proportions ; now the atmosphere is 
purer than ever before, and the insurrection is vanish- 
ing away ; the country is cast into another mould, and 
the gigantic system of wrong, which had been the 
work of more than two centuries, is dashed down, we 
hope forever. And as to himself, personally : he was 
then scoffed at by the proud as unfit for his station, 
and now, against usage of later years, and in spite of 
numerous competitors, he was the unbiassed and the 
undoubted choice of the American people for a second 
term of service. Through all the mad business of 
treason he retained the sweetness of a most placable 
disposition ; and the slaughter of myriads of the best 
on the battle-field, and the more terrible destruction of 
our men in captivity, by the slow torture of exposure 
and starvation, had never been able to provoke him 
into harboring one vengeful feeling, or one purpose of 
cruelty. 

How shall the nation most completely show its sorrow 
at Mr. Lincoln's death ? How shall it best honor 
his memory ? There can be but one answer. He was 
struck down when he was highest in its service, and, 
in strict conformity with duty, was engaged in carry- 
ing out principles affecting its life, its good name, and 
its relations to the cause of freedom and the progress 
of mankind. Grief must take the character of action, 



462 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 



and breathe itself forth in the assertion of the policy 
to which he fell a victim. The standard which he held 
in his hand must be uplifted again higher and more 
firmly than before, and must be carried on to triumph. 

Above everything else, his proclamation of the first 
day of January, 1863, declaring, throughout the parts 
of the country in rebellion, the freedom of all persons 
who had been held as slaves, must be affirmed and 
maintained. 

Events, as they rolled onward, have removed every 
doubt of the legality and binding force of that procla- 
mation. The country and the rebel government have 
each laid claim to the public service of the slave, and 
yet but one of the two can have a rightful claim to 
such service. That rightful claim belongs to the 
United States, because every one born on their soil, 
with the few exceptions of the children of travellers 
and transient residents, owes them a primary al- 
legiance. Every one so born has been counted among 
those represented in Congress ; every slave has ever 
been represented in Congress ; imperfectly and wrong- 
fully, it may be, — but still has been counted and 
represented. The slave born on our soil always owed 
allegiance to the general government. It may in time 
past have been a qualified allegiance, manifested 
through his master, as the allegiance of a ward 
through its guardian, or an infant through its parent. 
But when the master became false to his allegiance, 
the slave stood face to face with his country ; and 
his allegiance, which may before have been a qualified 
one, became direct and immediate. His chains fell 
off, and he rose at once in the presence of the nation, 



ORATION BY GEORGE BANCROFT. 463 

bound, like the rest of us, to its defence. Mr. Lin- 
coln's proclamation did not take notice of the already 
existing right of the bondman to freedom. The 
treason of the master made it a public crime for the 
slave to continue his obedience ; the treason of a 
State set free the collective bondmen of that State. 

This doctrine is supported by the analogy of prece- 
dents. In the times of feudalism, the treason of the 
lord of the manor deprived him of his serfs ; the 
spurious feudalism that existed among us differs in 
many respects from the feudalism of the middle ages, 
but so far the precedent runs parallel with the present 
case ; for treason the master then, for treason the 
master now, loses his slaves. 

In the middle ages, the sovereign appointed another 
lord over the serfs and the land which they cultivated ; 
in our day, the sovereign makes them masters of their 
own persons, lords over themselves. 

It has been said that we are at war, and that eman- 
cipation is not a belligerent right. The objection 
disappears before analysis. In a war between inde- 
pendent powers, the invading foreigner invites to his 
standard all who will give him aid, whether bond or 
free, and he rewards them according to his ability and 
his pleasure, with gifts or freedom : but when at a 
peace he withdraws from an invaded country, he must 
take his aiders and comforters with him : or, if he 
leaves them behind, where he has no court to enforce 
his decrees, he can give them no security, unless it be 
by the stipulations of a treaty. In a civil war, it is 
altogether different. There, when rebellion is crushed, 
the old government is restored, and its courts resume 



464 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HO.USE. 

their jurisdiction. So it is with us ; the United States 
have courts of their own, that must punish the guilt 
of treason, and vindicate the freedom of persons whom 
the fact of rebellion has set free. 

Nor may it be said, that because slavery existed in 
most of the States when the Union was formed, it 
cannot rightfully be interfered with now. A change 
has taken place, such as Madison foresaw, and for 
which he pointed out the remedy. The constitutions 
of States had been transformed before the plotters of 
treason carried them away into rebellion. When the 
Federal Constitution was framed, general emancipation 
was thought to be near ; and everywhere the respective 
legislatures had authority, in the exercise of their ordi- 
nary functions, to do away with slavery. Since that time 
the attempt has been made, in what are called slave 
States, to render the condition of slavery perpetual ; 
and events have proved, with the clearness of demon- 
stration, that a constitution which seeks to continue a 
caste of hereditary bondsmen through endless gener- 
ations is inconsistent with the existence of republican 
institutions. 

So, then, the new President and the people of the 
United States must insist that the proclamation of 
freedom shall stand as a reality. And, moreover, the 
people must never cease to insist that the Constitution 
shall be so amended as to utterly prohibit slavery on 
any part of our soil for evermore. 

Alas ! that a State in our vicinity should withhold 
its assent to this last beneficent measure : its refusal 
was an encouragement to our enemies equal to the 
gain of a pitched battle ; and delays the only hopeful 



ORATION BY GEORGE BANCROFT. 465 

method of pacification. The removal of the cause of 
the rebellion is not only demanded by justice ; it is 
the policy of mercy, making room for a wider clem- 
ency ; it is the part of order against a chaos of con- 
troversy ; its success brings with it true reconcilement, 
a lasting peace, a continuous growth of confidence 
through an assimilation of the social condition. 

Here is the fitting expression of the mourning of 
to-day. 

And let no lover of his country say that this warning 
is uncalled for. The cry is delusive that slavery is 
dead. Even now it is nerving itself for a fresh strug- 
gle for continuance. The last winds from the South 
waft to us the sad intelligence that a man who had 
surrounded himself with the glory of the most brilliant 
and most varied achievements, who but a week ago 
was counted with affectionate pride among the great- 
est benefactors of his country and the ablest generals 
of his- time, has initiated the exercise of more than the 
whole power of the Executive, and, under the name of 
peace, has, perhaps unconsciously, revived slavery, and 
given the hope of security and political power to 
traitors, from the Chesapeake to the Rio Grande. 
Why could he not remember the dying advice of 
Washington, never to draw the sword but for self- 
defence or the rights of his country, and, when drawn, 
never to sheathe it till its work should be accomplished ? 
And yet, from this ill-considered act, which the people 
with one united voice condemn, no great evil will 
follow save the shadow on his own fame ; and that, 
also, we hope will pass away. The individual, even in 
the greatness of military glory, sinks into insignifi- 



466 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

cance before the resistless movements of ideas in the 
history of man. No one can turn back or stay the 
march of Providence. 

No sentiment of despair may mix with our sorrow. 
We owe it to the memory of the dead, we owe to the 
cause of popular liberty throughout the world, that the 
sudden crime which has taken the life of the President 
of the United States shall not produce the least im- 
pediment in the smooth course of public affairs. This 
great city, in the midst of unexampled emblems of 
deeply-seated grief, has sustained itself with com- 
posure and magnanimity. It has nobly done its part 
in guarding against the derangement of business or 
the slightest shock to public credit. The enemies of 
the republic put it to the severest trial ; but the voice 
of faction has not been heard ; doubt and despondency 
have been unknown. In serene majesty, the country 
rises in the beauty, and strength, and hope of youth, 
and proves to the world the quiet energy and the 
durability of institutions growing out of the reason 
and affections of the people. 

Heaven has willed it that the United States shall 
live. The nations of the earth cannot spare them. 
All the worn-out aristocracies of Europe saw in the 
spurious feudalism of slaveholding their strongest 
outpost, and banded themselves together with the 
deadly enemies of our national life. If the Old World 
will discuss the respective advantages of oligarch or 
equality ; of the union of church and state, or the 
rightful freedom of religion ; of land accessible to the 
many, or of land monopolized by an ever-decreasing 
number of the few, — the United States must live to 



ORATION BY GEORGE BANCROFT. 467 

control the decision by their quiet and unobtrusive 
example. It has often and truly been observed, that 
the trust and affection of the masses gather naturally 
round an individual ; if the inquiry is made, whether 
the man so trusted and beloved shall elicit from the 
reason of the people enduring institutions of their 
own, or shall sequester political power for a superin- 
tending dynasty, the United States must live to solve 
the problem. If a question is raised on the respective 
merits of Timoleon or Julius Caesar, or of Washington 
or Napoleon, the United States must be there to 
call to mind that there were twelve Caesars, most of 
them the opprobrium of the human race, and to con- 
trast with them the line of American Presidents. 

The duty of the hour is incomplete, our mourning 
is insincere, if, while we express unwavering trust in 
the great principles that underlie our government, we 
do not also give our support to the man to whom the 
people have entrusted its administration. 

Andrew Johnson is now, by the Constitution, the 
President of the United States, and he stands before 
the world as the .most conspicuous representative of 
the industrial classes. Left an orphan at four years 
old, poverty and toil were his steps to honor. His 
youth was not passed in the halls of colleges ; never- 
theless, he has received a thorough political education 
in statesmanship, in the school of the people, and by 
long experience of public life. A village functionary ; 
member successively of each branch of the Tennessee 
Legislature, hearing with a thrill of joy the words, 
"The Union, it must be preserved;" a representative 
in Congress for successive years ; governor of the 



468 PIONEER HOME TO WHITE HOUSE. 

great State of Tennessee, approved as its governor by 
re-election ; he was at the opening of the rebellion 
a senator from that State in Congress. Then at the 
Capitol, when senators, unrebuked by the government, 
sent word by telegram to seize forts and arsenals, he 
alone of that southern region told them what the 
government did not dare to tell them, that they were 
traitors, and deserved the punishment of treason. 
Undismayed by a perpetual purpose of public enemies 
to take his life, bearing up against the still greater 
trial of the persecution of his wife and children, in 
due time he went back to his State, determined to 
restore it to the Union, or die with the American flag 
for his winding-sheet. And now, at the call of the 
United States, he has returned to Washington as a 
conqueror, with Tennessee as a free State for his 
trophy. It remains for him to consummate the vindi- 
cation of the Union. 

To that Union Abraham Lincoln has fallen a mar- 
tyr. His death, which was meant to sever it beyond 
repair, binds it more closely and more firmly than ever. 
The blow aimed at him was aimed not at the native of 
Kentucky, not at the citizen of Illinois, but at the 
man, who, as President in the executive branch of the 
government, stood as the representative of every man 
in the United States. The object of the crime was 
the life of the whole people ; and it wounds the 
affections of the whole people. From Maine to the 
southwest boundary of the Pacific, it makes us one. 
The country may have needed an imperishable grief to 
touch its inmost feeling. The grave that receives the 
remains of Lincoln, receives the costly sacrifice to the 



ORATION BY GEORGE BANCROFT. 469 

Union ; the monument which will rise over his body 
will bear witness to the Union ; his enduring memory 
will assist during countless ages to bind the States 
together, and to incite to the love of our one un- 
divided, indivisible country. Peace to the ashes of 
our departed friend, the friend of his country and of 
his race. He was happy in his life, for he was the 
restorer of the republic : he was happy in his death, 
for his martyrdom will plead forever for the Union of 
the States and the freedom of man. 



BOSTON STEREOTYPE FOUNDRY, 

No. 4 Pearl Street. 






, ^°^nr^^ i) 



